The Beast Within
by Ravinesque
Summary: Robin is going insane as the horrific creature inside transforms him. Though the Titans forgive him, someone else doesn't...and she wants revenge. Slade isn't finished with him either...
1. Awakening

I recommend reading the prequel for this story: There's a Beast in All of Us – however, this isn't necessary as this story won't be too confusing on its own.

NOTE: For the purpose of this story, Robin's eyes and mask are _one and the same_. The show hardly states a clear difference between the two, so I'm treating them the same.

* * * *

Robin burst out of his dream and sat up, staring at the end of his bed and breathing hard. Sweat trickled down his face; he wiped it with his blanket. He'd probably never had a worse nightmare. He clutched his head and tried to control his rapid breathing. Eyes...bright red eyes. Fangs, claws...he shook his head and got up, the blanket falling to the ground. _Get it out of your head, it was just a dream - you're fine_. Robin looked to his left – the clock said it was only four in the morning. Still dressed in only his shorts, Robin padded out of his room.

As he entered the living room of Titans Tower, lights automatically began switching on. He rubbed his eyes and opened the refrigerator door. A single milk carton was sitting on the highest tier. Robin grabbed it and gulped down the remains of the carton, the rejuvenating coolness of the drink calming his nerves. In one movement, he crumpled the empty carton and wiped his mouth with the same hand. The carton was tossed into the trash can as he slid over the edge of the couch and snuggled into the arm of it.

After a big yawn, Robin switched on the giant television. Instantly, a monstrous mouth dripping with saliva engulfed the screen, accompanied by a loud, ear-splitting roar. He rolled his eyes - horror movie. He began flipping through channels, his brain beginning to speed up after his fitful sleep. Nothing interesting on, of course, but he'd rather be up watching trash on TV than in bed recounting his awful nightmare. He shook his head and murmured, "Crazy, crazy."

"What's so crazy?"

Robin instinctively jerked away from the voice and held up his hands defensively. "Who-what...? Oh, hey Raven." He relaxed his stance and reassumed his position in the corner of the sofa. Raven was sitting on the other side, fully clothed. She raised an eyebrow.

"Good morning. Nice shorts."

Robin blushed in the light of the television screen and hugged his knees. "I was planning to go back to sleep."

Raven closed her eyes and turned to face the TV again. "Your business is your business. Sorry for disturbing you." She stood up. Robin grimaced. If there was ever someone to talk to about dreams, it would be Raven.

"Er, wait. I didn't mean...look, you can stay if you want." He felt the urge to pat her shoulder, but in his current attire he knew it'd be inappropriate. Raven turned back to him and gave him a small smile.

"Tea?"

"Er, yes please." Robin stood up also. Raven looked him up and down with an amused expression.

"Perhaps you should put on a robe or something."

Blushing furiously, Robin went back to his room to change, wondering what he should tell Raven.

More chapters coming of course. Read and review. :]


	2. Bad Porridge

"...are you telling me you still haven't forgiven yourself over the whole Stryfe ordeal?" Raven narrowed her eyes. She and Robin had been talking for nearly an hour now and she'd figured out from this nightmare of his that he was still haunted by the "beast" he'd become after a demented scientist had attempted to force all of the Titans into the same body. It was a long time ago, and Raven had assumed that everything about this ordeal had been forgotten, or at least accepted by Robin.

"Of course I have. That doesn't mean the memory is erased, just less horrific." Robin slumped into the sofa, depressed. It was only this subject and of course Slade that caused Robin to act strangely. Raven bit her lip and grimaced. Personally, she couldn't blame him. She had her own horrors to suffer and she understood the power of certain nightmares.

"Look, Robin. I know it must have been terrible for you. Even though you were hardly conscious during the transformation, your mind suffered horribly. It's pointless to assume that the memory is just going to evaporate. You just have to accept the truth and move on."

"You think I don't know that? I'm not an idiot." Robin snapped.

"I didn't call you an idiot." Raven countered, coldly. She turned away, causing Robin to bite his own lip. He sat up and awkwardly put his arm over her shoulders.

"Sorry Raven. You're real great for talking to me about it. I really would be an idiot not to appreciate it." Both teens retracted uncomfortably. Raven hid a smile.

"That's okay. That's what...that's what friends are for." She shrugged and looked down.

Robin could tell she felt awkward now, and he stood up to give her space. "I'll have a think about it. For now, I'm going to train until breakfast. You can go back to sleep if you want."

Raven stood up also, carrying two empty teacups. "Um, okay. Have fun." Robin gave a small wave and he disappeared into the elevator.

* * * *

'COCK-A-DOODLE-_URK!" _

Beast Boy transformed back from a rooster and grabbed at his neck. The metal hand around it loosened and he dropped to the kitchen floor. Hands on hips, he faced Cyborg with a scowl, who frowned right back and said, "Man, we're all awake. We don't need another off-key squawk-fest."

"Off-key? Excuse me?" Beast Boy shoved his face right up to Cyborg's. "Say that again."

Before Cyborg could comply, Starfire floated in-between them and pushed them apart. "Friends, please. As you argue your breakfast gets cold."

Robin poked his spoon into his overfilled bowl, raising an eyebrow. "Just what is it, Starfire?"

The Tamaranean clasped her hands together and beamed. "It is an Earth recipe consisting of oats and milk and extra sugar for taste. I took your advice, Robin, and I've been practicing in your people's culinary arts. I believe you call it...porridge?"

Beast Boy and Cyborg looked at each other then both turned to Starfire. "That's not Earth food."

Robin chuckled. "She means oatmeal guys. It's cool." He loaded his spoon and put it in his mouth. Starfire floated beside Robin nervously, watching his face.

"Is it good, Robin?" she asked hopefully. Instead of replying, Robin's eye twitched and he pursed his lips. Cyborg and Beast Boy watched intently for a reaction as Starfire hovered closer, eyes wide. "Well?"

Robin put his hand over his mouth and looked away from Starfire. He was obviously trying not to splutter, much to the amusement of Beast Boy and Cyborg. In one brave gulp, Robin managed to swallow the awful mess in his mouth and he turned to Starfire, smiling weakly. "That was...er, interesting." Delighted, Starfire clapped in joy and shoved full spoons into the open mouths of Beast Boy and Cyborg.

"PYAAHH! UGHH!" Cyborg spat it straight back into Starfire's shocked face.

"YURRGH!" Beast Boy dropped to the ground and began scraping his tongue with his fingers. "Blaahh....blahhh..." his tongue felt shrivelled. Barely able to contain his mirth, Robin leapt over the bench-top and helped to clean Starfire's face. The team in the morning never failed to cheer him up, even after the terrible nightmare.

"But...but...I followed the recipe!" Starfire cried to Robin. The unfortunate pair of boys were now fighting over the tap to get to some water. Robin wiped the last bit of muck off of her cheek and chuckled.

"I know you did Star. Thing is, sugar and salt look very similar, don't they?"

"Salt...?" Starfire checked the box she had used. "But...this says 'sugar' on it, Robin! I did exactly what the recipe said!"

Robin slapped Beast Boy on the back and laughed. "It's not Star's fault is it, Beast Boy?" The changeling groaned and said sheepishly,

"I mixed the salt and sugar up last night to play a trick on Cyborg, remember?"

"I didn't fall for it, either." Cyborg began to see the humor in the situation and also laughed. Starfire, still rather offended, looked sadly into her own bowl. On a whim, Robin gave her a slight hug to cheer her up.

As soon as their bodies touched, a memory flashed through his mind so violently, so fast, he almost fell backward. _Red eyes, green flashes, a throaty growl._ One second it was there, the next it vanished into Robin's subconscious. He blinked, trying to steady himself. Starfire, Beast Boy and Cyborg were all looking at him, concerned.

"You okay, man?"

"I...yea. Sorry, dizzy spell." Robin touched his head and went to sit back down, confused. Raven, silent until now, nudged him gently. She was sitting next to him, and she had sensed the sudden memory burst in Robin's mind. She whispered,

"Was that...?" Robin didn't look at her, but nodded subtly. Raven turned back to her tea and sipped some more. Something was going on in his head. It didn't take a genius to realise it. Robin was not the nostalgic type. He cared about the 'here and now' and didn't usually care much for memories. And now...well – once was a coincidence, twice was trouble. She glanced back at Robin. He was stirring the salty oatmeal with a distant expression on his face. She felt a little sorry for him as she knew he'd felt better just moments before.

Robin rested his chin on one hand and stirred Starfire's creative breakfast with the other. Although the memory had fully disappeared, he knew exactly what it had been. Was this the beginning of something new? He hated to even imagine it. He'd put it behind him, all of it...the pain, the loneliness, the anger and the intense hatred. Absent-mindedly, Robin dropped his spoon and felt his chest where he had been stabbed by Slade's sword. Everything he had become, everything – had died. Why were the hated memories reappearing now?

While sifting through his thoughts, Robin heard the alarm begin to sound. Instantly, the nostalgia vanished and he donned his Titan attitude. He leapt up and ran to the computer to investigate the source of the alarm. The other Titans looked at each other momentarily, then followed suit. They trusted Robin implicitly, and any strange behaviour of his could be left alone.

Robin enlarged the video feed from the public library security cameras so all of the Titans could see. Their eyes widened.

"Oh, GAWD!"


	3. A Library of Violence

The Titans stared at the video feed. It was the HIVE trio, causing havoc in the public library. Jinx, Gizmo and Mammoth were blowing up bookshelves and sending books flying at the civilians.

Beast Boy groaned. "Who attacks a _library?" _

Cyborg punched his hand and cricked his neck. "Who cares? It's about time we got to kick their butts again."

Robin shut off the feed and turned around. "Titans, GO!" he cried. All five Titans left the Tower to investigate the chaos at the library.

* * * *

Jinx giggled as the bookshelf toppled onto a trio of girl students, trapping them under a mountain of heavy volumes. One girl screamed from underneath, which made Jinx laugh even harder. "Looks like you'll have to read your way out!" she yelled into the pile. A whirring sound behind her made her turn around.

"Read _this!"_ Before Jinx could react, a giant book slammed around her face, causing her to fall over backwards, heavily stunned. Raven stepped over the fallen witch and used her telekinesis to lift the mountain of books off of the students. They whimpered and headed for the exit without even pausing to thank Raven.

Elsewhere, Robin and Beast Boy had managed to grab a hold of Mammoth who had been cornering a young couple in a study booth. As Robin slammed his staff into Mammoths skull, Beast Boy winked at the couple. "Dudes, I can think of way more romantic places than a li-" he was cut off as a gigantic fist slammed into his gut, sending him flying off of the mezzanine balcony. Mammoth roared as Robin clung onto the back of his neck.

"Get...off...me!" he cried as Robin rode him like a bucking bronco. Beast Boy reappeared as a python and twisted tightly around Mammoth's legs, causing the giant to topple over. Robin used the opportunity to kick Mammoth down the stairwell.

Beast Boy transformed back and held up his hand to Robin, grinning. "High five!"

Robin smiled and complied. As his hand slapped Beast Boy's, his head spun once more – just for a second. A hideous memory flashed past his vision before vanishing again. In surprise, he nearly toppled backwards again, but he regained his balance. Beast Boy had already gone off to fight Gizmo.

Shaking his head, Robin ignored his instincts which were crying for him to keep on fighting. Instead, he stared at his hands thoughtfully, oblivious to the carnage around him. What did this mean? What was happening to him? Even after all this time, Stryfe had managed to keep him suffering the painful memories. Why? Why now, when he had finally healed? Sealed in his thoughts, he never even heard Starfire cry out to him.

"ROBIN, ABOVE YOU!"

Gizmo, flying past, had thrown one of his electric discs into the back of the hero's neck. Robin barely had time to react before the disc sent a thunderbolt racing through his body. His back arched agonizingly and he screamed.

"AAAGHHHH!!"

Starfire zapped the electric disc straight off Robin's neck and landed beside him as he fell into all fours, panting. She put her hands on his shoulders and tried to push him up again. To her surprise, he pushed her away.

"Robin, you are...unharmed?"

Physically, Robin was hardly damaged, but his head had suddenly exploded with countless images, whirring around his brain at light speed. Unable to see, he lowered his head until his nose touched the floor. His head was spinning more and more, faster and faster – he couldn't take it. It was like an endless slideshow of memories; thousands shooting through his mind faster than he could register them. His consciousness began to wane.

Suddenly, the images stopped – all he saw was black. Darkness, everywhere. Was it over?

"RAARGHH!!" Out of nowhere, a hideous, beastly face filled his vision. He jumped backwards, terrified. Before he could defend himself, it opened its huge jaws and Robin was lost inside it.

* * * *

Starfire wasn't used to seeing Robin so helpless. Usually, he reacted to attacks instantly and if he was hurt, he picked himself back up straight away. Now though, he was on all fours with his head on the floor.

"Robin? Robin, are you alright? Robin!" She wanted to help him up, but he had already pushed her away. She kneeled and tried to look into his face by lowering her own head. Suddenly, Robin jumped backwards, as though she had tried to attack him. "Robin? Answer me!" she cried, grabbing his arm.

Instantly, Robin turned to her, eyes narrowed and teeth bared. Before she could say anything more, he grabbed her outstretched arm and used her as a flail to smash into Gizmo, who happened to by flying past. Both Starfire and Gizmo hurtled through the air and crashed into the wall on the far side of the library hall – almost two hundred metres away. They both slid down the wall and crumpled onto the floor, unconscious.

Cyborg had seen the entire thing. He turned his head slowly back to Robin, who was now standing bent over, arms bent and wide – almost like someone planning to sneak up on another. Cyborg stomped up to him and cried out,

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? YOU COULD HAVE KILLED HER!"

Robin didn't even look at Cyborg. He turned around and his hands flew up behind him, grabbing the half-robot's neck. In one swift movement, Robin yanked downwards and Cyborg was sent flying off of the mezzanine balcony as well. Without pausing to see what had happened to his friend, Robin turned, jumped onto the wide, wooden banisters of the stairwell and slid down at super-speed. At the foot of the stairs were Beast Boy and Mammoth. Robin used his momentum to send a flying kick straight into Mammoth's temple, instantly knocking out the almost-indestructible teen. The momentum kept Robin flying across the hall before he smashed into one of the taller bookshelves. In milliseconds, Robin had reoriented himself and clambered up the bookshelf like a monkey. At the top, he finally paused and looked around. Pink sparks were flying in one corner of the hall. His eyes narrowed.

Beast Boy could only watch in amazement as Robin leapt from shelf to shelf with perfect balance, not even bothering to use a birdarang to swing across them all. Something was up, he just knew it. This was what happened when Slade came into the mix – Robin went totally nuts. However, Slade had nothing to do with this – in fact; he hadn't done anything for a very long time.

* * * *

Raven and Jinx were face to face, daring each other to attack. Both girls had their hands locked and were trying to push the other off balance. Jinx cackled and spat into Raven's face.

"For a witch, you're pretty useless."

Raven shook her head and pushed even harder. "I'm not a witch!"

Jinx's eyes looked over Raven's head and widened considerably. Raven noticed this and was experienced enough to know what that expression meant. Incoming! She let go of Jinx and dive-rolled to the right. Robin hurtled through the space where she had been standing and smashed right into Jinx. The pair flew right into the big pile of books.

"You again!" cried the sorceress, breathing heavily as she attempted to stand up. Robin spun his legs around, capoeira-style and Jinx fell onto her rump. He then jumped into the air, ready to stomp the life out of her. Jinx screamed, "EEEEE!!"

Acting quickly, Raven created an impenetrable surface above Jinx before Robin could reach her. She rushed to Jinx and slapped the witch's temples, knocking her out. Robin landed onto the black surface and growled inhumanly at Raven. She frowned right back at him.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" Robin's hands and feet were engulfed in black energy and he was pinned to the floor by Raven's mind. She stood over him, eyes glowing white and said seriously, "What's your name?"

Robin struggled ferociously against his bindings, making many a manner of strange grunts and growls. He was neglecting to make any human noises at all, making Raven nervous. She tried again, trying to jog his memory. "What is your NAME!?"

This time, Robin stopped moving, and for a second Raven thought he might have passed out. He murmured something softly and looked straight at her. She saw into his eyes, which were filled with tears.

"Robin. My name...is Robin."


	4. Solitary Confinement

Jinx, Mammoth and Gizmo were being hauled out of the rubble and strapped into specialised police vans. Beast Boy and Cyborg sat on the kerb with their chins in their hands, watching the soldiers lock up the troublesome trio. Both couldn't think of anything to say, too sick to talk about what had happened.

Inside the nearly-destroyed library, Starfire was attempting to bring back Robin's senses. Though slightly bruised, Starfire was fine and cared more about Robin's wellbeing than her own. She had one hand on his back to keep him in a sitting position, and the other hand sitting on one of his pulled-up knees. Robin showed no response. He was still conscious, but was ignoring everything; staring ahead blankly without moving. Starfire clicked her fingers in front of his face, shook him gently, even pinched his ear. Nothing.

Raven stood awkwardly nearby. Though she understood what Robin was going through better than anyone, she wasn't into touching people.

"Come on Starfire," she said. "I don't think it's working."

"Robin! Robin, please! Stop doing this to us!" Starfire continued. Robin didn't move. Spontaneously, Starfire suddenly pulled him into a hug. She held him gently and closed her eyes. "Please, Robin, we need you. Come back."

That did it. Robin blinked and raised his arms slowly to hug Starfire back.

"Robin!" The Tamaranean was so delighted that the embrace became a full-scale bearhug – she flew into the air, squeezing him tightly. Even Raven expressed her relief through a small smile.

Once on his feet, Robin wiped his eyes embarrassedly. "Let's go." He said nothing more, and headed for the exit.

* * * *

At Titans Tower, all five Titans gathered in the infirmary. Seeing their afraid yet curious faces, Robin gulped and began.

"Guys, look...something's wrong with me. We all know it. Ever since Stryfe disappeared, we thought it was over-"

"It WAS over!" Cyborg cried. "We actually saw something come out of your body. You should be just fine!"

"Well I'm not." Robin could barely keep his head up for the shame. "And until I am fully recovered – if I _do_ recover – I am a danger to you all. I hurt you Cyborg, and you, Star. I wasn't in control of myself. I cannot allow myself to put you in danger like that again."

"What do you propose?" Raven asked with a cynical tone. Robin glanced at her.

"I am going to put myself in solitary confinement until I manage to-"

"WHAT!?" Robin backed down under the four faces that were shoved up to his own.

"You're just gonna lock yourself up like some psycho?" Beast Boy was adamant. "You're talking as though you're an animal!"

Robin could barely stand the shame of it all. "But...I _am_ an animal."

Stuck for words, Beast Boy looked down sheepishly. Starfire, however, would not have it.

"No, Robin! You are not an animal. You are our friend and always will be. One mistake does not make you a criminal!"

"Star, it wasn't a mistake. It was purposeful – I felt it happen, I _wanted_ it to happen." Robin could bring himself to look at her eyes, which were filled with tears. "This will be best for everyone. I'll be fine, and you'll be safe. While I am locked up, you guys can see if you can find Stryfe, or maybe his research. Maybe he'll have a clue as to how I can be cured."

Angrily, Starfire poked Robin's chest. "You cannot be cured as you are not sick! You are just fine and we are happy how you are!"

"She's right, man. You don't have to suffer through this by yourself!"

"I'll be in the Tower. I'll be fine!"

"Dude, we aren't letting you do this!"

"We don't have a choice, Beast Boy!"

As the other Titans began to argue louder and louder, Raven's temper exploded.

"_SHUT UP!"_

Instantly, the Titans complied and looked to her, shocked. She walked across the room and put her hand on Robin's shoulder before saying, "Robin is right. We should do as he says." Before the Titans could object, she continued. "There is no need to get so upset. He will be safe inside the Tower and we can visit him anytime we want. This won't be a prison for him, it will be an asylum – a place where he knows we will stay safe, and vice versa."

Beast Boy and Cyborg let up. "So, he'll just be down here this whole time?" Beast Boy asked. Raven nodded.

"We saw what he's capable of. He isn't in control. Robin needs this time alone, but he still has us."

"Well...I guess that's okay."

"No! Not it is not!" Starfire was now pointing accusingly at Raven. "How can you even consider such a ridiculous proposal? Robin is not an animal, Robin is our best friend! We cannot allow him to spend night after night in a dark cell with no one but himself!"

"Star, I'll be okay. You can talk to me through the d-"

"NO! Simply talking is not enough. We could not see each other! We could not hug nor exchange gifts of friendship! I will not let you go through with this!"

Raven, very awkwardly, put her own hand on Starfire's shoulder. "Starfire, look. None of us are happy with the idea, but you can't argue that it makes perfect sense. Please understand this."

Starfire looked to Robin, tears streaming down her cheeks. "You...you are quite sure you are going to be okay?"

Robin finally managed to smile. Starfire could always make him do that, even in the toughest of times. "Star, have I ever lied to you? Of course I'm sure." He choked as Starfire pulled him into another bearhug, sobbing heartily. The other Titans couldn't help but roll their eyes. Starfire was so emotional – though it really helped in sad times, it was rather annoying in others.

"Well, er..." Robin couldn't do much but shrug at his team once he was released from Starfire's grip. "I'll go and get changed. I'll meet you down here in a couple minutes."

****

The cell was specially designed for dangerous or insane criminals who had to be tamed down or interrogated by the Titans. It was made out of reinforced concrete and stainless steel plating – polished smooth like chrome. It had an en suite, a sofa and a television inside the wall, all secured perfectly, according to Cyborg's infinite details. These could be retracted at the push of a button, but only from the outside. Beast Boy whistled as they peered through the doorway.

"Wow. Luxury for the bad guys, huh?"

Cyborg slapped the back of Beast Boy's head. "They could be in here for a long time, ya know. Anyway, you want Robin to actually go insane?"

"I know I would. There's a severe lack of Gamestation here." Beast Boy shuddered.

"I think I'll manage." The pair turned to see Robin, dressed in his old white gi and pants. He was smiling, but they could tell it was put on.

Robin entered the cell and ran his finger down the wall before turning back to Cyborg. "You're in charge, Cyborg. Not just of missions, but this cell. Make sure they come to you before they come to me. I don't want anyone pressing something they shouldn't." He glanced at Starfire, who was leaning against the opposite wall of the hallway, eyes closed, lips pouting.

"You got it man." Cyborg pounded fists with Robin. "You can count on me. Hope you do okay in there."

Beast Boy transformed into a possum and curled around Robin's neck. "Yea, Beast Boy. I know. I'll miss you too." Robin petted the green possum.

"Please heal fast, Robin. I cannot bear to know you are all alone for so long." Starfire grabbed Robin for the third time that day, squeezing the life out of him. He barely managed to hug her back before she flew off, unable to stop herself from starting another sobbing fit. Robin watched her go sadly, before asking,

"Er, where's Raven?"

Cyborg scratched his head. "She must've run off. Sure she was here a second ago..."

"Okay well...thanks for this, guys. You're great." Robin felt stupid for saying it, but he meant it. Cyborg nodded.

The last thing he saw of Robin was his badly-disguised misery, before the half-robot pressed a button and with a hiss, the pneumatic door slammed shut, sealing their leader away.


	5. In A Nutshell

Slade narrowed his eye. He could not – _would not_ – tolerate failure.

"You imbecile."

The man cowering before him was short and fat, dressed in a foul, moth-eaten suit. His hair was scraggly and dry, a 'mad scientist' cliché. This man's name was Professor Earnest Stryfe; a weak-hearted coward and at times a raving lunatic. Slade was filled with loathing at the mere sight of him.

"Mister Slade, I am...so sorry. I never meant...I never knew..." all he could manage were half-sentences, his terror for Slade overwhelming his speech.

"No. You never knew anything. It is beyond belief that an idiot such as you invented such a fantastic machine."

His harsh tone was met with a whimper. Stryfe began to grovel before him. "Please, Mister Slade. I had it destroyed because the experiment-"

"-was a complete and utter success, until the Titans ruined it."

"It was...it was...blasphemy! I-it was just so...wrong. Their faces...their horrible faces..."

"You're useless. Totally useless. I don't care what you think it was. "

"But Mister Slade! The relay...! The relay is working perfectly. The Titans-"

"_Never_ interrupt me!" Slade's fist connected with Stryfe's jaw and the short man flew back several metres. "I know the relay is working. Soon the Titans will lose every one of their precious memories connected to Robin. That does not concern me." Slade grabbed Stryfe's jacket lapel and pulled the shaking man up to his masked face. "What _does_ concern me is your failure to cooperate. If you disobey me again, I will _kill_ you..._personally."_

The revolting man made a fake grin and clasped his hands together. "Oh, Mister Slade, you are so, so kind, so forgiving. I thank you so very, very-"

"I didn't say you wouldn't be punished. Let's continue with our discussion, shall we?"

* * * *

It had been almost 24 hours now and Robin was still sane, safe inside his cell. Starfire, once she had finished sobbing, had come back to the cell and decided to keep Robin company for the entire duration of his 'sentence.' Robin really appreciated her support, and had told her so.

"I am your best friend Robin, and nothing could keep us apart." She'd replied. Robin smiled from the other side of the door. _Well, that wasn't cheesy at all._

The two Titans were sitting back to back with the thick door to the cell between them. Starfire was doing most of the talking, but Robin didn't mind. Just hearing someone speak was enough for him. He found himself smiling at everything she said; truly happy that he had friends such as her. Occasionally Robin would egg her on with a "Sure" or a "Well of course."

There came a point in time when Starfire stopped talking altogether. Robin surmised she was trying to think of something else to talk about. He chuckled and said jokingly, "Hey Star, do I get some food soon?"

There was no answer. Robin knocked the door gently with his fist a couple times. "Star?" Still nothing.

He turned around and knocked harder against the steel. "Starfire, you still there?" There was no sound at all. She had probably just left. After all, she'd been with him for such a long time without even sleeping...she must be tired. He looked around his cell. She'd forgotten to bring back the sofa and other things. At least the lights were off.

Sadly, he curled up by the door. He didn't mind that she'd left at all. She just hadn't said goodbye. Robin couldn't shake the thought. And why hadn't Raven come to see him? Granted, it did sound pathetic, but it would've been nice...

****

"Let's review, shall we?" Slade's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "The electric relay you activated is slowly erasing memories of Robin in the other Titans, simultaneously forcing Robin's most hated memories to the surface. This will, in turn, separate the one from the whole."

"Yes, but-" Stryfe began.

"Once free of personal and social restraints, Robin is completely vulnerable, which is when we capture him."

"Yes sir, except-"

"Under your influences, Robin will be forced to submit to the creature born inside of him during the experiment."

"Well yes, but-"

"Once he has submitted, Robin can only grow stronger, as the creature's powers are born on its own, and completely without the Titans' help."

"Mister Slade!" Stryfe finally gasped. "The relay is not infinite, it fluctuates. Also, memories cannot be literally erased, just hidden underneath others. So in theory, they will resurface."

Slade leaned forward in his chair. "In theory or reality, it will not matter. As long as we capture Robin before your useless relay goes back on itself."

Stryfe bit his lip. "Yes, Mister Slade."


	6. New Voices

**Warning:** a bit of gore in this chapter.

* * * *

When Robin woke up, he could barely see. The lights in the cell were still off; no one had come down to check on him. He dismissed the thought – his friends wouldn't just ignore him, they had just forgotten. He stood up and began pacing back and forth in front of the door, thinking it all through.

Judging by the time he had entered the cell, how long he had talked with Starfire and how long he had slept – as he was trained to remember – it was around 6:30pm, the day after the attack on the public library. He wasn't exactly starving because he'd been through intense survival training, able to stand situations much worse than this, but he couldn't ignore that he'd missed four or more meals. There was a small flap at the bottom of the door that could be retracted from the outside to allow food inside, but this obviously hadn't been used. He surmised that the Titans were so used to him being a hermit in his room while obsessing over crimes that they must have absently thought that was where he was now. Shut off – but willingly, able to return at any point. The thought that they would purposely ignore him was almost laughable.

"_It's not that impossible,"_ a voice floated in from the surrounding darkness. Robin dropped into a fighting stance and backed up to a corner, looking around wildly.

"Who's there?" he called. The voice had not come from the door. Someone else was in the cell with him. "Show yourself!"

"_No one's here, Robby. It's just me."_ Robin staggered at the reply. The voice, it was his! Was someone playing it through a hidden speaker? Was Cyborg playing a trick on him?

"_No and no. I'm just here to talk. You looked a little lonely."_ It was impossible to discern a certain direction that the voice was coming from; it was everywhere. Loud and clear, blatant and obvious, but completely hidden. Robin dropped his stance, but continued to stare into the darkness.

"Who am I talking to?" He asked tentatively. The voice immediately began to laugh.

"_Gee, that's what I'd like to know. 'Who are you talking to?' Haha, good one."_

"Answer me! Who are you?" Robin was getting angry now. Someone must be playing a trick on him.

"_In all serious, I'd like to know too. The Titans might like to know as well."_

Robin could not understand. What the hell? Why were they being so vague? He tried a different approach.

"Where are you?"

The voice began to laugh again. It sounded from the left wall. _"Here I am!"_ Straight after it spoke, the voice called from the far right corner. _"Or am I here?"_ Robin made a leap for the corner, but in the air, he heard the voice behind him, laughing beside the door. _"Or here, perhaps?"_

Robin landed and turned, teeth gritted. "Stop playing games! Where are you? Show yourself!"

"_How can I, when I don't exist?"_

"Wh-what? No-"

"_Ro-bin's cra-zy! Ro-bin's cra-zy!"_ The voice swirled around him, mocking him and laughing. _"Never thought it'd come to this, did you? Always so serious, so closed-minded. Robin the Boy Wonder. Robin the Titan leader. Robin, Robin, Robin. Well, here's some news. You finally CRACKED!"_ The laughter was cruel and manic; it hurt to hear. Robin leapt again toward the voice, aiming a lethal kick. His foot connected with nothing but steel plating, behind which was reinforced concrete. The force reverberated up Robin's leg; it would have broken any other human's bones.

"Shut up! Just _shut up!_ I'm not crazy! I can hear you – you're real! You're somewhere in here and I'm going to knock the crap out of you!"

"_Good luck with that, Robby. I'll just wait till you've broken your legs and arms, maybe then you'll calm down." _Now the voice sounded condescending, which only made Robin angrier. He leapt towards the voice again, but ended up punching the wall. His knuckles screamed in agony. Robin was too hard-headed to agree with the phantom voice, and he continued to attack the darkness, much to the voice's amusement.

"_This way, that way. Over here, over there. Keep going Robby, I think your fist has nearly had it_." It was right. Robin's left hand was absolutely aching, the jarring from the reinforced walls causing his bones to become brittle, ready to break. He hung it uselessly at his side as he crouched in the centre of the room, panting. His logical side was simply raging at him, telling him to accept that he really was going insane. He wouldn't listen, he couldn't.

"I'm...not...crazy." he hissed into the darkness.

"_Does it matter if you are?"_

"Go away, whoever you are. Just...just leave me alone." Robin collapsed into a cross-legged position, still panting, nursing his left hand.

"_Come on, now. Why would you want to be alone? I'm here to keep you company."_

"I don't need company. I need sanity."

"_Well, I guess if you don't want to hear about the beast, I'll go. Ta-ta, Robin..."_

Robin suddenly looked up. "Wait, what? Beast? What do you mean?"

Cackles. _"You want me to stay then?"_

Against his will, Robin nodded, wondering if the voice could see.

"_Okay then, Robby. Let's talk."_

* * * *

Professor Chang may have been famous in the underground, but the unpopular Stryfe had far surpassed him. However, Stryfe was now a broken man, his sanity shattered after his greatest experiment went haywire. Chang knew nothing of this experiment – in fact, he didn't particularly care – but was very interested when _she_ came to him. If, in fact, you could refer to her as a 'she.'

'She' was barely alive; a pus-spewing, stinking mass of burnt flesh, scarcely able to hold in her own organs - an absolute horror to anyone but Chang. As she lay on his operating table, he studied her DNA and biological make-up thoroughly. She was definitely somewhat human, but she denied it. As far as he could tell, she had been blasted with some sort of heat ray or fire blast, both breaking her shoulder blades and burning her flesh. Apparently, this attack had happened in midair, because more than half of her bones were broken in an upward formation, as though she'd landed heavily on something very hard and solid.

It was a miracle she had survived, let alone stood up and found her way to him. She shouldn't be alive. Something was holding her together, both physically and mentally. Chang had tried to get more information out of her, but she hardly spoke. Whenever he asked her something, all she would reply with is "Fix me."

Fix her he did. As an infamous but fantastic bio-chemist, Chang was only too pleased to add her to his list of achievements. He'd encased her rotting flesh within prosthetic tubes and armour, shaped to her body. These tubes were lined with receptors, which alternated between sending and absorbing electric shocks. Where her blood vessels had been fried, he installed cables to both receive and transmit these shocks, translating them into messages that were sent into her brain, which was still mostly intact.

Surprisingly, once he had her encased within the armour, she began to recover significantly fast, even though he hadn't yet charged it. Something inside was keeping her alive. Not only were her organs continuing to function, not only was her body holding together even though the flesh had been burned to a crisp – but her brain had not shut down. This was completely unheard of. Once the brain suffered too much, it shut down, but hers was still going. What made her tick? Chang had to find out what.

After four months of intense work, she was healed - in a sense. Now a mass of metals and plastics, she could stand on her own. Her head, like the rest of her body, was encased within a helmet with no visor. He hadn't been able to save her eyes or nose, but she had told him she didn't need them anyway. To help her breathe and speak using her mouth, he installed a magnetic, vibrating box. She spoke and wheezed much like Darth Vader, but it worked nevertheless.

He watched her walk tentatively in circles, getting used to her new body. His head was already filling with ideas. He could install guns, hacking devices...anything onto this suit of hers. They could be partners in crime...

The feminine mass of metal turned and faced him. Chang grinned. "How does it feel, princess?"

"I do not like you," was the emotionless reply. His creation raised its arm and showed its gauntleted palm to him. Before he could say anymore, there was a quick, intense pain in his chest. Chang was dead before he hit the floor.

The suit of armour held the professor's heart in the air, which had flown straight out of his still-living body. She slowly squeezed the hand into a fist, causing the dying organ to burst. Blood dripped down the metal hand and arm. "I am not a princess." She gasped through her fake voice box.

* * * *

Curled in the corner of his cell, Robin was turning over the new facts. He knew now that the voice he had been hearing was just his own consciousness, and he had been talking back...two opposite parts of his brain talking to each other. He asked questions, and the voice answered them, even though the answers were already inside his head. Though the concept sounded mad, Robin understood that in such a situation, it was to be expected. After all, why was he in here?

"So," he said to the blackness. "Though I'm no longer connected to my friends through that experiment, the creature still exists."

"_The creature you became was not the product of all five Titans in one. It was literally born through the experiment as a whole new person. A third party_." The voice called back to him.

"But," Robin continued. "Why was something new created, when all the experiment did was combine five life forces?"

"_Do you remember that Stryfe had to touch you? The Titans' life forces were forced into yours via his own body – his hands."_

"Stryfe...he was touching my face with his hands. Do you think...?"

"_The Titans were collected separately into his belt, but had to flow together through his body before it went into yours."_

Robin's eyes widened. "A piece of him must have been torn off during the process and flowed with the other life forces - into my body. There must have been some sort of...collision."

"_Yes, a collision. Lives were fused so violently, they in fact created new life. This new life flowed into your body, overtaking your anger and hatred, which you were feeling at the time."_

"But I was knocked out, and the Titan's woke up. They gained their lives back."

"_Of course. You remember your fight with the Puppet King, don't you? When bodiless, life forces will go straight back to their host."_

"The creature remained. Then Slade...Slade killed me, and it died." Robin once again felt the place where he had felt the sword impale him.

"_Well now, it obviously didn't."_

"So I'm still...still possessed?"

"_Come on Robby, you aren't possessed. You just have a dual personality. Though, I bet whoever wins this episode will probably be expelled from your body."_

"That can't – that _won't _– be me. I won't give up."

"_Maaaaybeee..."_

Robin stood up and shouted angrily, "NO! I won't betray my friends. I will _never_ give up on them, never! I will win, I WILL WIN!"

To his surprise, there was no impertinent answer. Just silence. "Hello...?" he called.

Nothing. The voice was gone.


	7. Back and Forth

Cyborg and Raven noticed it, at last.

It was so faint, so subtle that it was a miracle that Raven managed to sense it in the first place. It happened once every three hours – a tiny flutter in her head. She'd been meditating when it happened. After a visit to Nevermore, Raven was positive that something was happening to her memories. Something bad.

She'd run straight to Cyborg's room. Once face to face with the cybernetic teen, she voiced her concern.

"Funny you should mention that..." Cyborg had mused. Apparently, he had noticed a small blip in his own system. Every three hours, the current through his brain - which could be read on-screen – took a tiny, tiny dive, before rectifying itself. They agreed; something was happening.

None of the Titans even remembered that Robin was below in the holding cell. They hadn't forgotten their leader all together, but they neglected to wonder about where he might be. Even Starfire, the most emotional and loving Titan of them all, wasn't thinking about Robin.

Now that Raven and Cyborg knew something was up, however, events began to speed up. Thoughts began to get darker.

* * * *

_"They forgot you."_ The voice cooed.

"They forgot me." Robin repeated.

_"They don't care about you anymore."_

"They don't care about me anymore."

_"They hate you."_

"They...no...they're my friends..."

"_They hate you; why else would they ignore you? They've left you in the dark with no food, no water, nothing to do and no one to talk to but yourself. Isn't that what you'd do if you hated them?"_

"I...I..."

"_They hate you."_

"They...they hate me..."

"_They aren't your friends."_

"They...aren't my friends."

"_You'd be better off without them."_

"I...I...I'd be better off..." Robin struggled.

"_...without them." _The voice finished for him.

"Without them."

"_No more Titans. No more friends."_

"No more friends..."

* * * *

The Slade bots could hear murmuring from inside the cell, but couldn't quite hear what was being said. It didn't matter either way.

The three of them had crept inside the Tower and were so far unnoticed. The door lock was both a retina scanner and input computer. They needed the correct eye and the correct password. The Slade bots looked at each other, shrugging. Plan B.

Pressing the button at the bottom of the door made the flap open on robotic hinges. As soon as there was enough space, one of the Slade bots tossed a small gadget through the hole.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep-beep-beep-beep-b-b-b-b-b-PZZZZZZZ.

An extremely bright flash glowed through the hole at the bottom of the door. The target within must have been reached by the gadget's effects. The Slade bots waited by the door for the target's response...

Two hands appeared at the bottom of the door, startling the Slade bots. They stretched out, more and more, until someone's hair began to poke out as well. The Slade bots waited in the darkness, watching Robin's contortionist-style performance as he slowly, painfully, made his way through the small hole.

Once his abdomen and pelvis had passed through the hole, one Slade bot's fingertip was opened up to reveal a hypodermic syringe. The needle was plunged into Robin's unsuspecting neck, causing the Titans' leader to pass out. The Slade bots, mission accomplished, picked up the target and made their way back out of the Tower.

* * * *

Cyborg slammed his fist into the main computer's keyboard, sending loose keys flying. "It's a sub-frequency electric relay! It's literally buzzing around in our heads! Where the hell is it coming from!?"

"And why is it being used on us?" Raven mused.

All four Titans were staring up at the giant screen which was depicting the relay as it subtly flowed through their heads. Beast Boy, once again the guinea-pig, was drowning under the amount of cables that had been attached to his head. His eyes widened at the sight of the information next to the image.

"You mean, every time that thingy beeps, we lose more memories? Oh no, what if I forget how to make waffles? What will I have for breakfast now?" He pulled at his hair, groaning.

"Although I do love to eat the 'waffles,' I do not think that what we are forgetting is as mundane as breakfast recipes..." said Starfire, twiddling her thumbs. Before Beast Boy could make a rude comment about her breakfast the other day, Raven interrupted,

"There's something we've been neglecting. We all know it. We can all feel it. But none of us know what. The relay must be causing this."

Starfire nodded. "Whoever is sending this relay must know us well to be able to get inside of our heads. To fight back, we must remember what we have forgotten."

Suddenly, the alarm began to sound. The screen depicting the 'relay' and its information disappeared, replaced by a map of Jump City. A red dot was blinking in the central district. Cyborg sighed angrily and turned to the rest of the Titans.

"Looks like we got something else to worry about for now. Titans, GO!"

* * * *

Though she couldn't remember her own name, she could remember the creature. It was burned into her memory – a foul, mindless beast that had taken everything from her. During the endless hours of immense pain, she had concentrated solely on the memory of 'it,' the 'thing.' She'd stayed alive by using her power to hold her body together, and she'd stayed conscious by focusing on her immense hatred of the creature.

Now she had an outer shell which kept her together. Though her body could never be normal again, at least she could rest and sleep. The professor was nothing to her. Everything was nothing to her. All that mattered was to find the creature again – to make it suffer horribly before she killed it.

The armour was spiked and made in layers, coloured green except for her left hand, which was now stained with the professor's lifeblood. The helmet was angled downwards, with spikes going backwards and up, similar to a 'Gundam suit.' She flexed her hands, ignoring the pain of the millions of electric shocks the armour created as she moved. At least she could still use her power, barely.

The people around her groaned in agony. She was standing in the ruins of the central park with dozens of civilians on the ground, all with broken legs. None of them knew where the creature was. They denied even knowing what she was talking about. Pathetic.

"Hey there, robotica!" the voice was behind her. She turned and saw four new people. There were two girls, a small green boy and a large robot.

"Do not call me that," she wheezed. Her fake voice box rattled painfully when she spoke. One girl floated nearer to her and said,

"I am asking you nicely to surrender. I cannot allow you to continue hurting these innocent people."

"I do not like you." The alien suddenly rocketed into the air, straight up. She screamed as she sped away from the other Titans.

"Hey! Just who do you think you are!?" The robot challenged her, as the green boy transformed into a gorilla.

"I do not like any of you." She said, her voice devoid of emotion, buzzing through the vent near her mouth. She panted slowly but heavily as she breathed. "Do not come closer."

They charged towards her anyway. She held up her hand and they stopped in midair, as though time had completely stopped. When she opened up her fingers, the three went flying backwards at super speed.

* * * *

Raven rubbed her head and replaced her hood. Beast Boy helped her up and said, "Gee, I wish Robin were here."

"I agree. Robin-" As soon as she said his name, her eyes widened, as did Beast Boy's. Cyborg punched his fist into his hand, exclaiming,

"Robin! Of course! He's what we forgot about! Where has he been? Where is he now?"

"Locked in a cell, alone and in the dark." Raven was filled with regret. Beast Boy and Cyborg looked at each other. Starfire landed softly next to them.

"We must go back! Robin must think we have deserted him!"

"Sorry Star, but this metal lady has to be dealt with first," Cyborg said, putting a metallic hand on her shoulder. "The Teen Titans can handle one fight without Robin. By the way, why did you go flying off like that?"

Starfire was indignant. "It was not me, it was her! She somehow made me fly straight up, and very fast. I couldn't control it."

"Whoever she is, she's pretty strong if she can control our movements," said Raven. "We'll have to try and fight with projectiles."

"Won't she control those too?"

"No one can control Starfire's starbolts or my sonic cannon," said Cyborg. "Beast Boy-"

"Yea, yea..." Beast Boy muttered. "Distraction. I know."

"No, I meant LOOK OUT!" Beast Boy was suddenly crushed underneath the feminine green suit of armour. It had no face, but it was probably smiling.

"Fools," it gasped. "You will die."

* * * *

Please review! I really, _really_ appreciate feedback. (Sorry for the back-and-forth-ness of this chapter.)


	8. The End of Robin

In the last chapter, I was kind of just trying to move all situations forward. Sorry that it was confusing, but I was pretty eager to write more battles. As you may have noticed, I'm making all of this up on the spot. Please be aware that some conversations may get a little confusing.

* * * *

_"Silly, silly._"

The patronising voice was the first thing he heard. Robin opened his eyes groggily, seeing nothing but darkness.

"W-what?" he murmured sleepily. His body was refusing to move. What was wrong, was he drugged or something?

"_Look what I've reduced you to. A disoriented, sleepy little boy with no friends but the voice in his own head."_

"Mmm..." Robin was unconcerned. Though it was his own voice, it was impertinent and he was getting rather sick of it. Bracing his hands against the wall, he tried to stand.

"_Are you listening to me?"_

He ignored it. He was sick of it being right. Laboriously, he pulled himself upwards and finally managed to stand up straight. His head was aching terribly. Robin closed and opened his eyes several times. Definitely a drug. Had it been one of the Titans?

The Titans...wasn't he part of the Titans?

"_No. You're alone, remember? I'm your only friend."_

"Some friend," Robin growled. "Just go away."

"Robin? Just who are you talking to?" Robin could distinguish and recognise the different voice instantly. Before he could say anything, the annoying voice whispered into his ear,

"_Haha, I remember him. He's not as bad as you think. At least he appreciated me."_

Before stopping to think, Robin swatted the air by his head. This action caused the third voice to laugh softly.

"Hearing voices, I see. First sign of madness. I guess it's to be expected, isn't it Robin? You've been suffering so badly, haven't you?" the new voice was teasing him. He knew who it was, and somehow...he just wasn't surprised.

"Slade...you've got some nerve. You killed me, remember? Here to apologise?"

"_You're being pretty rude." _The voice just wouldn't shut up.

A light was switched on. Robin narrowed his eyes in surprise as he tried to adjust. He was in Slade's old lair, what a surprise. Slade was standing ten feet from him, hands behind back. The hulking, armoured villain was masked, only one eye showing. Slade spoke again,

"I'm going to ignore that it ever happened. After all, it was an accident. What matters now, though, is that you are alive and well. How are you feeling?"

"_See, he cares about you-"_

"Shut up! Just shut up! I don't want to listen to you, to anyone! I just want to be alone!" Robin's shouts echoed around in his head, causing him to feel dizzy again. The drug was still wearing off. He toppled over onto all fours. "I'm so sick of everyone. Everything. Just go away."

"_Are you talking to me or him?"_

"Everyone!" Robin screamed. To his surprise, he suddenly vomited. Nothing but blood spewed out, as he hadn't eaten in a couple days.

It was tragic to watch.

* * * *

Slade, watching the pained boy before him, thought back to when he had first proposed the Apprentice plan.

"_I've chosen you. Congratulations_." He'd said to Robin.

"_No way would I ever work for-"_ Slade had held up the trigger. In Robin's eyes, he'd seen the instant submission. Such anger, such hatred – but definite submission. It was anger and hatred that brought forth the creature inside; Slade's presence was usually enough to trigger these negative emotions.

Now though, Robin was suffering something that went a lot deeper than his personal vendetta. According to Stryfe, Robin should be feeling completely alone – excluded – from everyone and everything. He should be filled with doubt and sorrow, and he was. It disgusted Slade to watch his most prized possession crawl in the dust like some weakling. However, it was all part of the plan. Sorrow induced nostalgia, which is exactly what he needed.

The second drug wouldn't kick in for another few minutes. Slade walked up to Robin and crouched in front of him. The boy was naked except for white martial-arts pants, and Slade could see the huge amounts of sweat. Even with his arch-nemesis this close, Robin ignored him.

Slade gently pushed on Robin's shoulder, causing the boy to fall onto his backside. There was no fight in him.

"Robin, I am telling the truth when I say that I am not enjoying this any more than you are."

Robin laughed dryly, wiping blood from his mouth. "Sure. This must be some hell for you."

Resisting the urge to hit the insolent boy, Slade continued. "The drug will keep you from moving about too much. Do you see this little device?" He held up what looked like a metallic matchbox. "Every three hours for the past three days, this device has been sending out a signal to your brain. The less you move physically, the stronger the signal."

"What does it do?" The question was genuine. Slade smirked.

"Technically, you can control what it does, Robin. As we speak, it is stirring your memories around, forcing the less likeable ones to the front, but you are actually making it do that."

"Wh-what? What would you gain from-" He'd stuttered. Only a matter of time now.

"You remember our last meeting? The angrier you become, the more the beast inside you begins to surface. If a mass of terrible memories is all you can focus on, it is only natural that you become angrier and angrier, until..." Slade's voice trailed off.

To his surprise, there was no sudden retort, no rude comeback. Instead, the boy replied,

"Why go to all that trouble when there are a million other ways to make me angry?"

"Any other way, you'd eventually get over it. You always calm down, Robin. This way, the anger can only replicate itself. The creature will be only too happy to take over your body and wreak havoc like you did at the library."

"That's your plan?" Robin was laughing, Delirious? Surely not yet. It was too early. Slade frowned and nodded. Robin grinned lopsidedly. "Only you, eh Slade? A cunning plan to take over my brain – so many details, so many variables – and it worked. Now that you've won, send off your mad creature to destroy stuff. Way to g-_hic!"_ Robin's eye started twitching.

Slade stood up again and looked down as his former apprentice began shaking fitfully. "No, Robin. It's not as simple as that. Unfortunately though, this is goodbye. Robin is now a dead person." Slade turned and walked away, as Robin writhed on the dusty ground, moaning softly.

* * * *

This time, Robin could see the voice. It was himself, of course, dressed in his old uniform. The other Robin was sitting cross-legged in the air, watching him.

"I'm delirious," he said. Of course he was. He was standing on an island in the sky. Everything was red; the ground, the sky. It was surreal. Then of course, he had a double.

"_Consider yourself lucky,"_ said the other Robin, grinning. _"At least you won't be consciously killing thousands of innocent people."_

Robin kicked the dirt. "I should have known this 'beast' thing wasn't dead. This whole time I've been under Slade's spell. I'm such an _idiot!"_

"_Now now, don't get too angry. Remember what happens?"_

"I'm so sick of being his puppet. He thinks he owns me. I'm my own person! I deserve to choose what to do with my own life!"

"_Keep going. It's not like I don't care."_ The other Robin yawned and put his chin in his hands, smirking.

"This whole time I've been playing right into his hands. He's always five steps ahead of me, and then he mocks me for being so slow. When am I ever going to get rid of him? When is he going to leave me alone!?" Robin was furious with himself. How he hated losing! How he hated Slade!

"_Nothing like the angst of a confused teenager,"_ The other Robin floated nearer to him and made a silly face. _"So selfish. So self-absorbed. Poor, poor Robby."_

Robin aimed at a punch at it, but his fist touched nothing but air. The apparition laughed cruelly, only making him angrier.

"If you're just part of my brain," Robin shouted, turning around. "I can get rid of you. I don't need you here."

The other Robin wagged his finger, grinning childishly. _"That's where you're wrong again, Robby. I lied. I'm not part of your brain."_

"What?" Robin was confused. "But if you're not me, then who-" he stopped in mid-sentence, the truth dawning on him.

"_Yeessss. It's me, the one you've confessed everything to. The one you trusted, your only friend. I'm the creature you hate. I'm the one you can't control." _The other Robin was now cart-wheeling around him, cackling. Robin could only watch, shocked. _"It's not just the feeling of anger that makes me stronger. When you doubt yourself, I'm the one in charge. You haven't noticed already? Why else would you start listening to me, there in that lovely cell?"_

"But you...you..." Robin was lost for words. All his troubles were right in front of him. Should he attack? Could he?

"_Me...me. Yes, I'm you. I've always been you. Ever since that darling professor shoved the Titans through himself into you, I've been part of you. Everyone has a dark side ya know. Still, I'm sick of this silly appearance. I'm sick of being stuck inside of you, looking like you and acting like you. It's time the tables were turned."_ The apparition somersaulted backwards and landed like a gymnast, bowing dramatically. He winked at Robin. _"Want to see how I really look?"_

Without waiting for a reply, the figure began to change. Its muscles were inflated like balloons, expanding to thrice the size of the originals. Its legs bent awkwardly, and the feet were extended into hind legs. Its arms grew into giant forelegs, all the while pitch-black fur replacing the flesh. Ears became pointed and long and teeth elongated into huge fangs. Hands and feet became huge, furry paws with claws spiking out of each. A tail, long and scourge-like, whipped around its new body.

Before him stood a freakish monster. It was huge and wolf-like, with eyes burning red. Robin was filled with horror and awe.

"_So, Robby,"_ it growled, snout wrinkling, showing its huge fangs. _"Still keen to kick me out?"_

Robin composed himself. He didn't care anymore. What mattered was stopping this thing from taking over his body. He dropped into a fighting stance. "I've beaten worse monsters than you, pipsqueak!" he cried, trying to sound braver than he was. "You can't control me unless I'm angry! I don't have to be angry to beat _you!"_

"_You are the stupidest creature in existence. I couldn't grow into this without your help. You've already lost, Robby."_

"My name," Robin yelled as he ran towards the monster. "Is ROBIN!" He sent a flying kick into what he thought was its chest.

The beast evaporated around him into black smoke, which swirled around him, laughing cruelly. As he regained his balance, the black smoke dispersed into nothingness.

Robin looked around frantically. He was alone on the island in the sky, no way out of this madworld.

He'd lost.

* * * *

Ahh, okay...please review. I only have two reviews! I really want to hear feedback, or this story is just going to self-destruct. Pleeease tell me what you think. Anything would be great. If you can't think of anything, then tell me what you think will happen next. Come on guys, be pals.


	9. Unstoppable

After an hour and a half of losing repeatedly, the Titans' hopes of defeating the metal enemy were almost shot. The central park now looked like a bomb site; sculptures, trees and fences ripped from the ground and hurled at the unstoppable suit of armour. None of the Titans had even grazed the girl – if it could even be called a girl – and were instead suffering from their own myriad injuries.

Raven knelt beside Beast Boy and began healing his shoulder. The changeling had smashed into the brick boundary wall of the park. He turned to her, furious.

"How is she winning? Is she tellykin...telly...does she move stuff with her mind like you?"

Raven frowned at him. "For the third time, no. She definitely has some sort of power, but it's limited. She can't just move everything with her mind."

"You should be able to beat her then, right?"

"It's not as simple as that. My powers are very hard to control, and if you haven't noticed, I usually only move one or two things at once. She, on the other hand, can control a lot more than that at once."

Beast Boy tested his shoulder and cricked his neck. "You've lost me." He took Starfire's outstretched hands and the alien girl helped him up, saying,

"If you watch closely, Beast Boy, she can't control anything unless it is moving. I can't fly at all when I am near her, or she will use my movement against me."

"...iiiiinnnncoooOOOOOMIIING!" Cyborg suddenly crashed through the trio, sending Beast Boy back into the already-crumbling brick wall.

"Cyborg! Beast Boy!" Starfire picked both teens up and stood them on their feet. They rubbed their heads in unison.

"Any ideas on how to defeat the lovely lady?" groaned Cyborg. "I'm up for anything...that'll work." He finished his sentence looking sideways at Beast Boy, quelling the changeling's unrealistic plans of action.

"Actually, Cyborg..." Starfire lowered her voice and the Titans drew into a tiny circle. "Do you see how she cannot do anything when we are too far away? She has to follow us to keep in control."

"That's surprisingly observant of you, Star. So, you think she has some sort of control radius?"

"Yes. We just have to learn how big the radius is."

Raven looked Starfire straight in the eye. "Once you know, what then?"

To her disappointment, the Tamaranean shrugged. "I am just trying to think like Robin. He would know what to do after that."

"She's right," Cyborg punched his hand. "We have to re-strategise. Here, let's try..." he began whispering his plan to the other Titans. Once he was finished, they all nodded, but before anyone else could speak, the enemy landed right in the centre of them, causing a shockwave to ripple across the ground. The Titans were thrown backwards from her.

"You keep running," she wheezed, almost robotically. "Yet you do not retreat. You are stupid creatures."

Raven scrambled to her feet. "What do you want?" she hissed. "Why are you hurting people?"

"Revenge," was the reply. "Until I get it, I do not care who gets in my way."

Raven deliberately didn't look at the other Titans as they began to creep away. "Just who do you have a problem with, then?"

The metal, faceless girl dropped her fighting stance and seemed to be looking straight at her, even though it didn't have a face. Through the grate in its head, it rasped, "A creature. A beast that is somewhat human. It is dressed in green and red. Have you seen such a creature?"

All of the Titans stopped in their tracks. She could only be describing one person. Cyborg prepared his cannon and motioned Starfire and Beast Boy to get ready. Raven clenched her fists angrily.

"What do you want with this creature?"

"That is none of your concern. Do you know where this creature is?" Though the tone was completely devoid of emotion, Raven could sense the armoured girl getting angrier. Beyond her enemy, however, Raven could see Cyborg signalling to her. She nodded her head, meaningfully.

"Tell me where, or I will kill y-" The rasping was cut off as Raven shoved a kick straight into where the girl's face should have been. The force made her stumble backwards, but only slightly.

This was the first time she had been touched, and for a moment she stood still, in complete shock. Raven imitated her, not even moving a muscle, knowing it would be her downfall if she did. Instead, she watched the girl regain her senses and leap toward her.

POW! A green bull smashed into the girl's side, the momentum taking both of them straight through the brick wall to spill out onto the street. Beast Boy staggered backwards and toppled over, rubbing his head dizzily.

"That's the third time I've crashed into that wall, and it doesn't hurt any less."

The enemy was on her feet in an instant. "Fool!" she grated tonelessly. However, before she could do anything to Beast Boy, she was blasted across to the other side of the street by Cyborg's sonic cannon, ending her flight by slamming into a building.

"Star! Raven! Now!" cried Cyborg. Starfire immediately began throwing countless starbolts at the suit of armour as it attempted to stand back up. Raven's eyes glowed white and four giant slabs of the brick wall that they had smashed through flew through the air towards the place where the armoured girl had landed. As fast as she could, Raven sealed all four slabs together around the body of their enemy, trapping her in a giant cube. Raven then fused the bottom of the cube's walls to the pavement.

All four Titans regrouped, but kept their distance from the stone cube. Cyborg checked a scanner on his arm.

"If she's all alone in that small space, I don't think she'll be able to use her power. Nothing will be moving."

"What about herself?

"The force in her attacks is only momentum, something that she doesn't control. There isn't much room to move in there, to create any momentum. The police can handle her now."

Starfire clasped her hands together. "Now we must go and talk to Robin!"

Cyborg nodded. "I agree. He's probably starving though, like me, so let's get some pizza first."

As they turned to go, Beast Boy heard something rattling. He turned into a beagle and began sniffing the brick cube, curious. It was something small; bouncing between two surfaces. The other Titans followed suit and inspected the corner of the cube that he was sniffing.

Suddenly, a piece of gravel shot out of the solid brick. Beast Boy peered through the hole it had left behind. There were other pieces of gravel too, vibrating against the brick. He de-transformed and jumped onto Cyborg's back.

"Dude, she's drilling out!"

The cybernetic teen sighed, frustrated. "Well guys," he groaned. "Looks like Robin and pizza will have to wait a little longer."

* * * *

Please review!


	10. Born to Die

A/N: Though he is no longer, in fact, Robin – I will refer to him so to make it easier to write. Happy reading!

* * * *

Slade settled into his chair.

"Well, professor. Looks like your plan succeeded. Congratulations."

Stryfe, on his knees before Slade, looked fearfully up at the masked villain. "My...plan?"

Slade chuckled. "Of course, professor. What do you think of your creation now?"

"M-my creation? Mister Slade, it was all you. You did everything. It is your creation, not mine. You deserve-" Stryfe couldn't finish. A giant stone hand had encircled his neck and was lifting him off of the ground.

"Professor, if it weren't for you, this city would not be coming to its knees as we speak. The Titans will fall. What was Robin will destroy everything that opposes me. Everything that is happening, professor, is thanks to you."

"I...I..." Stryfe could only gasp, hanging in the air as Cinderblock held him by the neck. Slade continued.

"Yes, everything. Everything is because of you. All I ever dreamed of, professor, you have given me. However, there is one problem..." Slade raised his hand and slowly squeezed it into a fist. "I hate you. I hate everything about you. You poisoned the soul of the one person in this world I respected. You sealed his fate with your twisted experiment, and he will never be the same again. He is now dead."

Stryfe's eyes widened. Surely Slade was not blaming Robin's demise on him? Slade had planned this from the beginning – he had _forced_ Stryfe to send out the electric relay. All along, Slade had told him that the purpose of the relay was to eventually bring the beast in Robin back to life. The mastermind had even just said that he was grateful for it, so why was he angry about it? He pulled at the stone fingers around his neck.

Cinderblock's fist opened and Stryfe fell to the ground. He massaged his neck and barely managed to gasp, "But, Mister Slade...you can't possibly...I only-"

"Me? Can't?" Slade now cracked his knuckles. "Professor, you hardly know me at all. I can do anything I want, anytime I want, and you cannot stop me. Now..." Slade steepled his fingers and leaned back into his chair, making darkness fall over his form. "I will only need your services one last time."

"Mister Slade! No! Please, you promised me you would let me go once the second phase was complete!"

"You should have never trusted me, you pathetic worm. Take him away."

Cinderblock picked Stryfe up again, this time by the left ankle, and began walking away into the darkness, the professor's cries ringing through the caverns.

"No! Slade, please! No! Nooooooooooooo!"

* * * *

No memories. No emotions. He was devoid of any human thought. Robin was dead, deep inside, never to resurface. Now, he was something else.

The beast had fused with Robin's body and mind, and therefore had had give up its own personality and memory, not that it had much of one. The entity that was Robin was now a nobody – an in-between person. As naive as a newborn baby.

His body had returned to the state it had begun as – half human, half animal – reflecting the fused persona within. The upper body was mostly human, only the hands and arms were covered in the familiar jet-black fur. His legs had completely transformed: covered in fur, extended skeleton and huge hind feet that were bent at the toe, appearing as though his knees had been bent backwards. On his fingertips and along the paws where his feet had been were long claws, razor-sharp. There was even a bushy, black tail that had burst out of his tailbone.

Robin looked around, sniffing. Where was he? Who was he? He tried to stand up straight, but found it hard to balance as he felt sure he should be on all-fours. Sinking his claws into the earthen wall, he steadied his wobbling legs, trying to get used to them. His tail hung uselessly; he had no idea what it was for.

On a whim, he tried making a noise. All that came out was a confused growl. He didn't understand himself; could he speak? The thought disintegrated as he sniffed. He smelt something. Fresher air, cool and rejuvenating. He followed the scent as if hypnotised, stumbling along the wall and absently teaching himself how to use his legs. Before long, he no longer needed the wall to lean on, and crept stealthily along in the darkness towards the smell that drove him...

* * * *

When Stryfe woke up, the first things he realised was that he was sitting down and he was securely strapped to some sort of thick pole. Looking down, he recognised his old lab coat – someone had put it on him. He looked around and saw nothing but darkness.

"Hello...?" he whimpered, knowing that this was Slade's doing. At the sound of his voice, lights began switching on, the brightest of which were positioned in a large circle around him. Stryfe used the light to see what he was tied to, and shrieked in horror.

It was a Bell 412 helicopter, stealth-black, sitting calmly on its pad. Stryfe was strapped to one of its landing skids, and he knew that it could only mean one thing – he was going to die.

"Hello yourself, professor." It was Slade. He had suddenly appeared next to Stryfe in a crouching position. "I'm sorry it's come to this, but things were never smooth between you and I. At least in your last moments, you will be of some use."

Stryfe struggled uselessly against his bonds, tears forming in his eyes. "Mister Slade...please...please don't kill me..."

"Oh, I'm not going to kill you, professor," Slade chuckled, causing a sliver of hope to rush into Stryfe's watery eyes.

"R-really? Oh, tha-"

"That's your _creation's_ job." Slade finished with a smirk.

"W-what? B-but..."

"Though he doesn't remember anything, intense visual or aural reminders will stir up something within the depths of his mind. Robin holds extremely deep loathing for both you and me, so I am going to use it as an advantage. He will only get angrier."

"He will...evolve..." Stryfe mumbled. "One body can only take so much power..."

"Yes. Undoubtedly, the power will overwhelm everything. Robin's – the beast's – demise will cause such an explosion that will destroy everything...including the Titans, if he hasn't dealt with them already. Killing him myself would temporarily kill the beast, just like last time... but causing him to become overwhelmed by his own power will finish them _both_ off...for good." Slade's voice seemed to drop in the slightest. "Robin was poisoned by you and your fantastic machinery. He wasn't Robin anymore. He belonged to this...this beast."

"But Slade," Stryfe, despite himself, was curious. "You wanted Robin for yourself! Why would you kill him off like this?"

Slade leaned in closer to Stryfe so that the cold metal of his mask was almost touching the professor's nose. Stryfe flinched, terrified.

"Because if _I _can't have Robin, _no one can_."

* * * *

Please review!


	11. Friction

Thanks _fedelity_ for your reviews.

xxxx

Robin sniffed the air again as he emerged from the tunnel. It was so fresh! He climbed over the heaped earth of the tunnel entrance and stood up fully on his strange legs to take in his surroundings.

He was on the edge of a huge, vibrant city. Beyond the city was a beautiful sunset, draping the skyline in golden light. He grinned as he felt the wind ruffle his hair and fur. This, he thought, was a life worth living. Whoever he was, wherever he was – he didn't care. As long as he could feel this peaceful, what else mattered?

Then he smelled it. Blood.

It overwhelmed his senses and made him forget all he saw and smelled. It was sweet and sickly, calling to him, enticing him. His whole head was ablaze with the smell of it. It smelled...wonderful. Giving in to his primal instincts, Robin streaked down the earth hill from the tunnel entrance and began running towards the city at super speed. Blood. It smelled so good...

xxxx

BOOM! The brick cage that had trapped the metallic girl blew apart, crashing into the Titans and sending rubble in all directions.

Beast Boy rubbed his arm where he had been gashed by a sharp piece of brick. He spat at the girl, "Who...no, _what_ the hell are you?"

The green suit of armour stood up silently, completely unhurt. Her strange voice rattled out through the grate where her mouth should be.

"That does not matter. You are insignificant. You will die."

Cyborg helped Beast Boy to stand up and said loudly, "Forget it. She's just some stupid, misunderstood teenage girl. She's so dumb she can't even remember her name."

"WHAT!" The girl was enraged. She kicked another piece of rubble, and used her power to send it rushing at Cyborg. He punched it with such a force that it disintegrated, and he laughed spitefully. Beast Boy caught on and transformed into a monkey, rudely mimicking her.

She squeezed her hands tightly into fists, shaking in rage. "My name...my name..." she was struggling to speak, but whether from memory failure or from utter fury, the Titans couldn't tell. She widened her stance and bent her knees, continuing to repeat herself. "My name...my...my name..." she hissed. Cyborg and Beast Boy backed away from her, hoping they weren't in her control radius.

Raven took advantage of the stillness to concentrate her power on the girl's left hand; she was curious to see what creature lay beneath the armour. As she chanted softly, the gauntlet was engulfed in black energy, and as Raven squeezed her fist, the metallic armour broke apart from the girl's hand. What was suddenly exposed shocked the Titans to the core.

It wasn't a hand. It was hardly even flesh. It was a shapeless, soggy mess of muscle, blood and bone, barely sticking together due to its lack of skin. Once the metal had fallen away, it hung limply at the end of the girl's arm, blood dripping off of the tip. The Titans cried out in unison,

"EWWW!" Cyborg, Beast Boy, Raven and Starfire backed even further away, disgusted by the sight of the girl's "hand."

At their reaction, the girl raised her arm and before their eyes, the hand reshaped itself into a five-fingered hand. She wheezed robotically and said, "You will regret what you have done to me...me...to me, Friction!" At the sound of her own name, she seemed revitalised. She swept her foot in front of her, kicking pieces of rubble into the air. Using her right hand, she slashed the air in front of her. The large pieces of brick flew speedily at Raven, but the dark girl protected herself by swiftly putting up a black shield. Even so, the force knocked her back a few feet.

Cyborg readied his cannon again. "She can't use her hand without the armour. Try to take it off!"

"What? Are you _nuts?"_ Beast Boy pulled at his green hair. "First of all, that's literally pulling off a _girl's clothes!_ Second, can you see that...that _mess?_ I don't want-"

"Sorry, Beast Boy, but it is our only choice." Starfire patted Beast Boy on the head affectionately.

"You will take nothing!" A metal foot smashed into Starfire's cheek, sending the Tamaranean flying even further than the momentum of the kick would allow. The now-named "Friction" spun on her foot and sent another kick into the back of Beast Boy's head. Before she could even think about controlling the changeling's momentum, Cyborg grabbed her by the ankle and yanked her off of the ground. Spinning around, he smashed her into a nearby streetlight pole, which would have broken any human's spine. The half-robot called out,

"Raven! Now!"

Concentrating on the foot that Cyborg was still trying to hold still, Raven let her mind flow over the armour. In seconds, the black energy pulled the metal away from Friction's body, leaving behind another sick mess of tendons and bone. Cyborg's face turned green and he let go of Friction's ankle in disgust.

The Titans regrouped, Beast Boy rubbing his head. "My head can't take much more. My brain is going to be bruised soon."

Friction stumbled, at first unable to stand on what appeared to be her foot. Using her power, she pressed the bones and tendons back into place and held them there. Now with both her hand and foot holding her attention, Cyborg assumed she would find it a lot harder to fight.

Before any of the Titans could say or do anything more, a shadow flew past them and smashed into Friction, causing the girl to be crushed into the asphalt of the street. There was a deafening scream of pain and Friction somehow managed to kick the shadow off of her body and into the light of the streetlamp. The Titans gasped, instantly recognising their friend and leader.

"Robin!" Starfire cried, attempting to fly towards him, but Raven held her back. Robin wasn't Robin anymore. He was barely even human, sporting a werewolf-like appearance and crouching like an animal. Worst of all, in his fanged mouth was-

"Oh, man!" Cyborg covered his mouth, thinking he was going to be sick. Robin had literally ripped off the heap of muscle and bone that had been Friction's hand. It was hanging in his mouth, like a chew toy for a dog. Beast Boy couldn't believe his eyes.

Friction was absolutely livid. The stub of her forearm was absolutely burning in agony and she struggled to concentrate on keeping the blood inside her arm. She climbed out of the crater and stood, wheezing and rasping loudly. She recognised her prey and an incredible anger flooded through her. She felt herself grow stronger, the pains subside, and her body numb itself. There was a sudden flash of bright, bright green, and the Titans covered their eyes. When they dropped their shields, their eyes widened.

It was like something from one of Beast Boy's epic, sci-fi movies. Friction had transformed into someone – something – larger, more fearsome. The armour was no longer plated and spiked, but clung to her body like a wetsuit. It stretched and grew, as though alive, back over her naked foot, encasing it once more in metal. Where she had had no face, there were now two large, slanted green eyes, glowing wildly. The liquid-like metal floated around her, like droplets defying gravity.

The heap of dead meat dropped from Robin's mouth. The sight of the monstrous creature before him stirred something deep inside.

What was it? Fear? Such a strange feeling. He didn't like it, so he did the only thing that sounded right to do in his naive little mind.

He fled.

Friction was right behind him. She levitated like Raven, the liquefied, green metal following her like a swarm of insects. The two anomalies sped away into the darkening night, leaving the four Titans utterly speechless. They couldn't take everything in, it was just too much.

Robin was not only the beast again, he'd...he'd attempted to _eat_ someone's _hand_. This Friction girl, too – what was she? How did she know Robin's beast form?

Cyborg, Beast Boy, Starfire and Raven looked at each other in shock. There was a silent agreement, and they, too, followed after their lost leader.

xxxx

Sorry for the sudden changes in perspectives. It would have gotten so annoying if I had had them all in different sections. I think they turned out okay. Please review!


	12. The Plot Thickens

Sorry for taking so long. Writer's block...heh heh.

* * * *

Fear?

The emotion was so new to him; he wasn't quite sure how to react. He was afraid of this strange, metal creature. Why? What made him feel this way? As he leapt easily from rooftop to rooftop, his long legs bending backwards and springing out again after each landing, he couldn't help but peer behind him at the ghastly pursuer.

There were two huge, green eyes that wouldn't look at anything but him. Attached to the eyes, there was what looked like a green, feminine body. Trailing after her was what looked like green water, floating as if alive and speeding after her like the tail of a comet. It was some sort of bright green demon, intent on destroying him. He could smell blood, only this time...it was his own.

While in mid-air, Robin felt something cold wrap around his ankle. Before he could even react, he was suddenly plummeting back down...

CRASH! The cement cracked under the force of his landing. Robin growled and pushed himself back up, unhurt. He heard a thud behind him, but couldn't turn around before the same cold object wrapped itself around his torso, pinning his arms to his sides.

"Rarhh!" he cried, attempting to speak. He didn't even understand himself. Instinctively, he bent his legs and somersaulted over the crater he'd made in the rooftop and turned in mid-air, landing to face his opponent.

She was a horrifying sight. Her green skin was rippling as if alive; flowing over her, never stationary. Halos of the liquid green metal floated menacingly around her – the exact material that had bound his arms. Robin struggled against it.

"It is no use, creature. I am Friction. I am unstoppable." The voice that came from the demon was wheezy and rattling. Though he could not understand what she said, Robin sensed her intent. He could feel fiery emotions emanating from her that he could not name.

"At last I have you, creature. You will pay for what you did to me." There it was again. That horrible sound. Robin flinched, disgusted. His mind was soaring through newborn emotions, trying to figure out what to do with them. He felt revulsion and fear – though he couldn't name them – and they confused him. How was he to react? What was he supposed to do?

* * * *

Though the Titans were hot on their heels, they couldn't match the speed of their reformed leader and Friction. Cyborg and Beast Boy flopped over backwards, panting heavily. The girls flew down to them and simultaneously said, "We have to keep moving!"

The boys groaned. Beast Boy scowled at Raven and said, "I can't keep running, I'm pooped! At least you don't have to carry this trash heap!"

"Say what?!" Cyborg grabbed Beast Boy by the neck.

"Stop this!" Starfire cried. "Robin is in danger and we must help him!"

"I think he can hold his own, Star." Beast Boy's tone was cynical. "I mean, did you see those claws? He doesn't need us."

This caused the Tamaranean to explode in anger. Her eyes glowed bright green and Beast Boy had to jump aside and behind Cyborg to avoid a pair of starbolts.

"How _dare_ you say such things!? Have you forgotten what Robin has done for you, for all of us? He is in trouble and he needs his friends, _now!"_

A black wall suddenly materialized between Starfire and the boys. Raven pulled back her hood and scowled at Starfire.

"Fighting will also get us nowhere. Remember, we need to control our emotions." The black wall disappeared and Cyborg and Beast Boy stood back up. Raven continued, "Obviously, Robin somehow escaped and transformed. He is the priority, not this 'Friction.' Starfire is right; he needs us."

"But what could we possibly do?" It was Cyborg's turn to be cynical.

"I am willing to bet that the relay which caused us to forget Robin is also what caused him to transform. It revokes memories, so perhaps if we somehow restored them..."

Starfire cut Raven off. "If we reverse the relay and help Robin to remember us, maybe he will transform back!"

"But how?" cried Beast Boy. "We don't even know who was sending the relay thingy!"

"Assuming Raven is right, I think we do." Cyborg checked the relay information again, which he had downloaded into his arm. "The only person smart enough to create the relay would be our old friend Professor Stryfe...and the only person crazy enough to pull this off would be..."

"...Slade." Raven's voice was layered with disgust.

"But even if they are behind this, how could we locate them?" Starfire mused.

"Can we track them through the relay?" asked Beast Boy, peeking at the tiny screen on Cyborg's arm. The cybernetic teen sighed.

"Even if I knew how, we can't. Turns out the relay's been switched off. Raven's right – its purpose was to get us away from Robin so he could transform."

"Then how...wait, do you guys hear that?" Beast Boy suddenly transformed into a meercat, clambered onto Cyborg's head and stood upright, ears peaked. The Titans fell silent and listened. There was a heavy whirring sound approaching.

"Sounds like a helicopter," said Cyborg, shrugging.

"Wait, that's not all." Raven looked up and pulled her hood back up. "Someone is screaming. You can barely hear it over the rotors."

"There!" Starfire cried, pointing. The Titans stared into the sky, watching the stealth-black helicopter soar over them in an arc to the left. It was flying below the city's skyline – illegal – but because of the proximity, the Titans saw who was causing the screaming.

Stryfe! There was no doubting it was him. His crazy grey hair and white lab coat flapping in the wind, his ear-splitting shrieks – the Titans recognised him instantly. He was strapped to one of the helicopter's skids, leaving his legs to flail in mid-air. The helicopter was heading in the same direction that Robin and Friction had.

"I've got a pretty good idea who the pilot is," Cyborg growled. "Raven, Beast Boy, try to beat the chopper to Robin. Come on Star, we're going up!"

As if in response to Cyborg's outburst, dozens of Slade bots began to rain from the helicopter. All around the Titans the androids landed, all in a crouched, ready position. Slade obviously did not want them to interfere. The Titans backed up to each other, facing outwards from a tiny circle.

"I am so sick of interruptions!" Cyborg was irate. He readied his sonic cannon.

Beast Boy gulped. "Any bright ideas?"


	13. Titanic Escapades

A/N: Heh heh, don't you guys love cliffhangers? On with the show...

* * * *

Robin felt one of his ribs snap, making him howl in pain. The liquid metal squeezed even tighter around his torso, forcing his elbows painfully under his ribcage.

Friction attempted to laugh, but all that came out was a metallic rattle. Her voice box grated agonizingly against the flesh in her neck, the plastic tubing refusing to expand with her muscles. This caused her to choke, which created an even worse sound.

She was absolutely repulsive. Robin couldn't stand her. As he lay on the concrete rooftop with her standing over him, he was filled with terror, desperate to get away from her. To escape her presence and her disgusting noises. He whimpered in fear, hoping she would somehow take pity on him.

He couldn't understand what was happening. Robin didn't know her – he didn't know anyone. The emotions that were swirling through his head couldn't be understood and he was unsure of how to react to them. Fear. Disgust. Agony. His bindings tightened even further, causing another rib to break. He whimpered pitifully.

"Hhaarrkhhh," Friction attempted to speak again, forcing her voice box to reorient itself. "You...harrkh...are so pathetic. Look...kkhh...what happens when you make me angry. You should have never fought me that day. You should have surrendered."

Robin couldn't understand her; all he heard was the awful grating that came from her faceless head. In a moment of utter panic, he kicked out with one of his legs. Without meaning to, the long claws on his foot paw stabbed straight into Friction's left shin.

Friction screamed – or would have if her damaged voice box would have let her. The sound that burst forth was the most horrifying, piercing shriek, giving Robin the fright of his life. He tried to swing his leg back, but his claws hooked in the withered flesh beneath the liquid metal of her body, causing her leg to be dragged out from underneath her.

As Friction slammed into the rooftop, howling nightmarishly, the binding around him became lifeless and dripped off of him like water. His arms sprang up and he sunk his claws into the cement wall of the rooftop. Using it as an anchor, he dragged his long claws back out of Friction's leg and pulled himself over the edge of the wall.

After falling four metres, he landed on an awning, rolled down its slope and fell another three metres onto the asphalt street. At first, he thought all he could manage was to lie there in a heap, burdened by the pain of his two broken ribs. After a few seconds though, Robin found that he could quite easily tune the pain out, and he managed to stand up.

Friction was still shrieking loudly, and all Robin wanted to do was to get away from the sound. He shook himself like a dog and began bounding across the city once more, this time to the west.

* * * *

"Great. Even in a hurry, Slade manages to grab a few of his elite robots." Beast Boy shook his leg in an attempt to be rid of the broken circuitry that was clinging to his foot. He'd just kicked the head off of one of the Slade bots, but the body had continued to come at him. Cyborg had had to blast it away with his sonic cannon.

"It's called resourcefulness, BB." Cyborg growled, swinging his cannon in an arc, blowing back several oncoming androids.

"Their armour is impervious to my starbolts," Starfire hovered over the boys, hurling countless rays of green at their foes. "What can we do?"

"We don't have _time_ for this," Raven hissed, eyes glowing white. "We need to get to Robin, _now."_ A dome of black energy engulfed the four Titans as she spoke.

"We are terrible friends. We should have never left Robin alone. He suffers now because of us!" Starfire landed inside the dome and clasped her hands together, tears in her eyes. "We deserve punishment for our awful treatment of him. Oh, if only we could get to him now!"

"Technically, it's not our fault that we forgot about him. But yea, we have to find him. Friction and Slade don't sound like a good combination." Cyborg checked his arm again. Its miniature crime-finding radar was bleeping, showing Slade's progression through the city.

"The incessant beeps show Robin's location?" Starfire asked hopefully. Cyborg shook his head.

"Sorry Star, there's no way to track him. Once we escape these guys, we're going to have to split up to find him."

"Question," Beast Boy poked his head between Starfire's and Cyborg's. "Just _how_ are we going to escape from here?"

"Well, if Robin were here..." Cyborg began.

"Robin _isn't_ here!" Raven rarely showed much emotion, but the Titans could hear the frustration in her voice. "Stop rubbing it in."

"Er, Raven? Robin...what happened...it's not your fault." Cyborg's voice was tentative. "There's no need to-"

"We have to go, NOW!" Raven's eyes crackled with white light. Turning to face the Slade bots, she suddenly spread her arms, palms open. To the Titans surprise, a huge, dragon-like shadow spread across the street, engulfing the ground beneath the androids.

"Raven, what-" Beast Boy couldn't finish. Raven lifted her arms to the sky and two things happened simultaneously. The Slade bots were all shattered – completely – and before any of the Titans could react, the small part of the asphalt they were standing on was lifted high into the air – fast. Beast Boy fell to his knees and looked up at the back of Raven's hood.

"How did you-"

"Find him. Stop Slade." She never even turned back to face them before soaring off into the night sky.

Her departure caused the piece of asphalt they were standing on to stop floating and fall back to earth. Starfire held onto Cyborg and Beast Boy turned into a hawk to keep from falling. As they landed softly on a nearby rooftop, Starfire voiced what they all felt.

"Something is wrong with Raven."

"No duh, Star."

"I've never seen her pull apart so many things at once." Cyborg was amazed. "She really came though-"

"Focus, Cy!" Beast Boy flapped his arms indignantly. "Robin, remember?"

Cyborg shook his head to clear the thoughts. "Right, right. As weird as that was, Rae's right...again. Star, you and I are going to follow Slade. We have to stop him; whatever he's planning, it can't be good for any of us, especially Robin."

"What about me?"

"Hawk eyes, BB. Search the skies. If you see anything, tell me and Raven."

"But she-"

"Just do it!"

"Yessir!" Beast Boy saluted and took off into the sky as a hawk. It wasn't until Cyborg watched him leave that he saw the stars were already coming out. They'd been fighting almost all day.

"Come on Star, its night. The darker it gets, the harder Slade is to beat. We have to hurry."

Starfire nodded solemnly and lifted him into the air, following the dot on Cyborg's arm that represented their most hated enemy.

****

Slade set one of his androids as the pilot and bent one knee to peer downwards at the petrified Stryfe. The professor had stopped screaming and was now gritting his teeth, eyes tightly shut. This would not do.

"Professor!" he called above the loud rotors. "Having fun?"

There was no answer. Stryfe was far too terrified to open his eyes, let alone speak. Slade frowned. Stryfe's lack of sound reduced the plan's rate of success by 22%, and he could not let the plan fail now. He leaned even further downwards.

"Would you like to be put down, professor?"

Without opening his eyes, Stryfe shrieked, "Yes! Please, Slade! Please let me down!"

"Don't you like flying?"

"Slade, _please!_ What do you need me for? Let me go!"

Slade chuckled to himself. "Not just yet. I need you a little longer."

"Why? What do you need? Anything, Slade! Anything! Please just let me down!"

"My dear professor, you're just fine how you are. You're the bait, remember?"

"B-but...no! Slade! _Please!"_

"It'll be over soon, I'm sure, professor."

Stryfe bit his lip, tears pouring out of his eyes and whipping away in the wind. He had to escape.

He had to escape, or he'd die.


	14. Catching Up

Robin's digitigrade legs seemed to strengthen with each huge bound. He had already forgotten the horror of Friction and was now enjoying the breeze that blasted his face as he flew across the city's rooftops. Once he'd even jumped so high he had almost reached the peak of a skyscraper, and to his delight he'd discovered that he could continue to run up the vertical surface until he'd reached the roof.

From the top of the huge building, he'd sighted the coastline in the west. An even fresher scent wafted from it, arousing his curiosity. Now he stood at the edge of the shore, spying the western side of the city that lay beyond the body of water. Waves licked at the ledge he stood on and he bent down awkwardly in an attempt to reach into the water.

Still unused to his strangely boned legs, instead of bending over, he buckled and fell over forwards, right into the channel. Caught completely off-guard, Robin thrashed about in the shallow water, thinking he was going to drown in this new, unstable ground. It wasn't until he heard a high-pitched scream that he went suddenly still, one of his few memories alerting him that Friction may be nearby.

He looked up. There was a fair-haired girl and a young man staring over the railing at him. The girl was screaming and pointing, causing him to reach up and attempt to cover his ears with his hairy hands. Robin hated the sound of screaming as it made his heart beat ferociously, reminding him of his pursuer.

Noticing that despite the water, there was still solid ground underneath, Robin stood up fully, showing the couple his strange physique. At this, the man yelled also and the two ran away into the night. The screaming softened, along with Robin's internal alert system.

Water was dripping down his body, tickling his skin. He looked down at himself and for the first time took in his own appearance.

His head, chest, stomach and upper arms were covered in pink flesh, similar to the couple who had been watching him. The rest – his forearms, hands, legs and feet – were covered in shaggy, jet-black fur, which was clinging to him from the water, making him feel cold. There was white fabric over his legs - one side longer than the other, ripped jaggedly.

He jumped out of the water and shook violently all over, just like a dog, causing his wet fur to let fly myriad droplets. He was learning more and more, and experiencing more of these strange feelings. Now he had felt joy, exhilaration, curiosity – they were great, far nicer than the ones he had felt before. What a strange life this must be.

"Grrr," he tried to speak again, thinking something meaningful would come out, Once again though, he couldn't even understand himself. "Grr...ahh. Rrrghh." Strange. He felt so sure that something would come out – words, like the green demon had spoken. Though he couldn't understand her, he knew she had been trying to communicate...somehow.

As he turned back east, something caught his eye. A large shadow, jutting out of the channel. He squinted, trying to judge its shape.

It was a huge structure, shaped like a person with their arms spread out. A...a...he struggled to think of it. A 'T' shape. Right? But...how did he know that?

The shadow structure seemed to call him, pleading him to come and discover its secrets. Robin's eyes grew wide as he stared at it.

He needed to go there.

* * * *

Once Slade had spotted the bright green, bloody mess that was Friction – stationary on the roof of the abandoned theatre - he knew he'd have to change course. She had obviously caught up to Robin and they had come to some sort of standoff – it seemed Robin had won, or at least gained the upper hand and escaped.

Slade knew about Friction. He'd watched her as she was - supposedly - killed by Robin, the last time he was in his beast form. She had admirable powers, but didn't know how to use them properly, which lost any inch of respect he had for her. He'd been surprised at her determination to stay alive however; as he had watched her use her unique power to hold her decaying body together until she could be healed. It was only natural for her to want revenge on he who had destroyed her body.

Still, she was blind and stupid. She did not process situations and she acted rashly. Slade admired how ruthless she was, but was disgusted at her lack of coordination and her recklessness. He screwed up his face as the helicopter passed over her, watching her stumble over an injured limb and scream profanities. Pathetic.

Anyone – even a dumb, primal beast – wouldn't be stupid enough to continue in the same direction after being attacked by their pursuer. Robin had changed course, but to where? Which way?

Slade picked it up the radio earpiece and turned up the volume. It had been tuned into the emergency calls department at the Police Station.

"...something on my roof! I can hear screaming..."

"Lots of robot things! They look violent! I need...

"...awful shrieking across the street. I think someone..."

"...weird creature! It looks ferocious..." Slade tuned into this particular call. It was a young man's voice, breathing heavily, sounding frightened.

"...we were walking by the shore, and it jumped into the water right in front of us. It was thrashing around...I think it was killing something..." Slade shut off the radio and smiled. Too easy.

The helicopter began to head west, aiming for the channel.

* * * *

When Beast Boy later spotted Robin, he had to trip over himself in the air to stop from calling out his name.

Robin was edging along the shoreline of the channel. Beast Boy took his chance and transformed into a humpback whale in the air. Without wings, he plummeted down, down...and with a colossal SPLASH, he landed offshore, near to Robin. The wave caused by Beast Boy's landing completely engulfed Robin, drenching him and making him howl in fright, the freezing water making the Titans leader shiver uncontrollably.

Beast Boy transformed back into himself and groaned. "Oww, belly flop..." A tear popped out of one eye as he rubbed his stomach.

_Beep-beep._ His communicator was calling. Beast Boy picked it up – it was Cyborg.

"Hey, B. Slade's headin' for the channel. If you're near, see if you can spot-"

"He's here," Beast Boy interrupted, looking at Robin, who was still whimpering, ignoring Beast Boy. "What do I do?"

"What do you think? Get him away! We can't let Slade catch him!"

"Know what's up with Rae?"

"She's gone to the tower. Quick, B. Get both of you outta there. Me n' Star are gonna take on the chopper."

"Righto. One beastly death race, coming right up."

Beast Boy barely had time to put away his communicator when a shadow passed over him. Robin almost slit the changeling's throat with his huge claws, but Beast Boy transformed into a squid and clung to his attacker's face, blinding him.

Robin got such a fright that he toppled over backwards on his unsteady, digitigrade legs. _Splash!_ He was submersed. Beast Boy transformed into a leopard and leapt over Robin onto the boardwalk, before looking back to see if Robin might follow.

Instead, Robin was standing still, knee-deep in the water, looking at his hands.

Robin felt strange inside. There was another feeling emerging. All of his senses were standing on end. It was spreading to every corner of his being, making his muscles tense and his eyes focus harder. It felt...it felt...good. He gritted his teeth as the new feeling surged violently through his head, washing away any rationale. From deep in his throat, a growl was produced that burst forth, louder than he'd ever tried before.

It felt good.

He didn't even notice that his claws were suddenly, magically, growing to twice their original length. Nor did he feel the fur growing further up his arm, past his biceps.

Beast Boy did, however.

"Oh...crap..." The changeling began to sprint away, down the shoreline, following the sound of an approaching helicopter. Things were getting even worse.


	15. To the Tower

When Robin looked up, the shape-shifter had gone. As he sniffed the air for its scent, the strange new feeling dissipated.

He couldn't name the feeling, just like the others, but it was the best yet. It was simultaneously painful and delightful, and it filled his whole being with energy. It made him want to destroy things, hurt things...he looked back to the Tower. There was something about that place...

Suddenly, sections of the Tower began to light up, bright yellow. _Bom. Bom. Bom._ The whole Tower was casting a warm light on the water now, calling him even more powerfully than before. He couldn't quite place it, but he felt like he knew the place somehow. The sealed box of memories inside his head was struggling to hold back what he was trying to remember.

He stood in the same spot, captivated by the light of the Tower. _Must go...must go there..._ With no logic in his newborn brain, Robin began to walk towards it, ignoring the deepening waters.

* * * *

"Good job, Raven. Lights were a great idea. We'll try and divert Slade, but be ready."

"I'm not an idiot, Cyborg. Beast Boy?"

"Yea?"

"Stop running away and get back here. He's going to drown unless you do something."

"I wasn't running awa-"

_"Now!"_

_"Fine._ But I won't forgive him if he attacks my face again..."

* * * *

It was only when the water level reached Robin's mouth that he began to realise that this was a bad idea. He'd been so enthralled by the Tower that he didn't even notice he was about to drown.

"Rrr...?" he gurgled, stretching his neck above the water. That awful feeling began to flood back, the one he'd felt as Friction screamed. He thrashed his arms and legs around, trying to climb out of the water. "Raahh!" he cried, wishing something meaningful would come out of his mouth.

The ground suddenly shifted, and then...rose? Robin barely managed to keep his balance as the waterbed floated him back up to the surface. Looking down, he saw he wasn't standing on solid ground, but a green, flat creature.

It was Beast Boy, as a huge ray, and he began speeding towards the Tower's island. Robin stood on top, rather like a surfer on his board. When he felt himself slipping, he immediately sunk his claws into the creature's back.

"YEOW!" The creature disappeared, to be replaced by the shape-shifting human. The sudden stop of Beast Boy wasn't enough to stop Robin's momentum, however, and Robin flew headfirst into a boulder on the island. As he attempted to rise, he staggered backwards and fell again. The world was spinning. His head wasn't hurt badly, since his skull was a lot harder than a human's, but he still felt rattled.

Beast Boy climbed onto the island too, groaning in pain. "Gosh, man. That _hurt_. I think I'm bleeding in like eight places..."

Robin ignored him. The odd, green boy was not a threat any longer. The strange feeling didn't arise now that he was back, so Robin felt no obligation to attack. Instead, he sat on his backside and rubbed his head. Beast Boy took this peaceful opportunity to call Raven on his communicator.

"Rae, what do I do now?"

"Whatever you do, _don't_ make him angry. I'm coming down."

"Easy for you to say, Miss Sunshine."

Raven didn't reply. Beast Boy couldn't help but grin. One up to him. Now, how to incapacitate a creature that only grew more powerful as you fought him?

* * * *

Starfire and Cyborg hadn't managed to catch up to the helicopter. Firstly, it was because they needed to watch its course and secondly - because it seemed to be packed full of lesser Slade bots, which randomly jumped out to attack the distant Titans. Now that they knew Robin was at the Tower, however, it was time to take action.

"Don't let the chopper fall," Cyborg warned. "Unless we're over the water. We don't want people getting hurt."

"Yes, Cyborg." Starfire agreed. "But how are we to attack without doing so...?"

"See if you can speed up to the door, and I'll blast the remaining robots out. Then you can throw me in and I'll take care of Slade."

"What about Professor Stryfe?"

"Release him, but don't let him get away."

Starfire nodded and flew as fast as she could. The rotors from the helicopter tried to slow her down with their tailwind, and she fought the urge to blast them off the roof to be rid of the incessant chopping sound.

When she caught up to the edge of the cabin door, she moved in closer until the fuselage was only three feet away. Cyborg in turn shot his sonic cannon through the doorway, aiming for the door on the other side. The crowd of androids were unable to protect themselves, and they were completely blasted right out of the helicopter's cabin.

"YES!" Cyborg yelled with glee. "Now throw me in!" Starfire complied, trying desperately not to let either of them near the deadly rotors. The half-robot landed expertly in the cabin, and Starfire was about to turn to Stryfe when the two Titans realised the same thing.

"Where's the pilot?"

"Where is Slade?"

They looked at each other in horror. If Slade wasn't here, then...

"LOOK OUT!" It was Stryfe's voice, but before they could do anything, the helicopter began leaning over – pilotless. Cyborg jumped right out of the cabin and was caught by Starfire.

"AGGHHH! HEEELLP!" Stryfe was still strapped to the left skid, and he was suddenly facing straight up as the helicopter tipped completely onto its right side. Cyborg looked down. They were nearing the shoreline – only a few more seconds and the helicopter would be clear of the city.

"Cyborg?"

"Forget the chopper. Drop me down there," he pointed to the roof of the department store. "You gotta free Stryfe."

Starfire trusted Cyborg with her life, so she complied, letting go of Cyborg as they passed over the roof he'd pointed to. As soon as she'd let go, she turned to Stryfe, eye's glowing bright.

"Oh, gawd...don't kill-ahh!" Green, fiery rays cut through Stryfe's bonds in milliseconds. Before he fell, Starfire caught him by the back of his lab coat's lapel and literally threw him back to Cyborg, her strength surpassing the wind and momentum.

Stryfe screamed as he flew back from the helicopter, only to be cut short with a loud "OWCH!" when he landed in Cyborg's metallic arms. Cyborg grabbed Stryfe by the back of the collar like Starfire and watched the Tamaranean work up a huge starbolt.

"Haaaaah-YAHH!" she shrieked, throwing the starbolt with all her might at the fuselage. The force from the throw alone sent the helicopter flying over the channel, before it completely exploded and fell apart into the water, safely away from the city.

Cyborg called out to her. "Go help BB and Rae! I'll catch up!" Starfire nodded and flew off towards the Tower, while Cyborg held Stryfe up in the air like a naughty puppy, facing him.

"What's going on!?"

"Please don't kill me!"

"I'm not going to kill you. Just tell me what Slade's plan is!"

"Please! Please don't...wait, what? You aren't?"

"If you don't hurry up and answer me..."

"Okay, okay! Look, Slade was using me as bait. He thinks that if your friend sees me and remembers me – and gets angry enough – he'll explode."

"...um, wait a sec." Cyborg raised an eyebrow. "And that would happen because...?"

"Your friend. The beast gains power from anger and hatred. Slade thinks that I'd make him-"

"-overwhelm himself with too much power, because he hates you so much."

"Well...yes..."

Cyborg narrowed his eyes. "How can he remember you and not us, his friends?"

"Intense emotions cause memories to surface. Slade thinks-"

"Yea, yea. I get it. Where's Slade now?"

"I don't know, I swear!"

Cyborg dropped the professor onto the roof, quickly considering what to do. Slade wasn't an idiot. Both Slade and Stryfe were hated intensely by Robin...but to keep himself safe, Slade was using Stryfe to do the dirty work. Now that his bait had been recaptured, Slade would probably go and bait Robin himself.

"Come on, doc. We're going to meet your buddy Slade."

Cyborg grabbed a handful of Stryfe's collar and began dragging him, eyes set on Titans Tower. The last Titan was coming.

* * * *

This seems to be working up to an epic climax. Since I'm making it all up on the spot, it's an adventure for me too. :D Sorry if you don't like the short chapters, I just thought it might be easier to read that way. Please review!


	16. Storm

Up close, Robin was a lot scarier. Beast Boy had never seen Robin in his half-state before. He'd been unlucky enough to witness the full transformation though, and as freaky as Robin was now, it couldn't be as bad as back then. It was more the change in the person than the appearance. He'd always looked up to Robin as a leader, even as a big brother. Robin was always serious, focused and determined. Now, though, he was acting like a complete stranger. He still looked like Robin, so Beast Boy still felt somewhat akin to him, but still...

Robin was sharpening his huge claws on the rocks by the water, making a ghastly screeching sound which didn't seem to bother him. Beast Boy, on the other hand, waited by the door of tower with his hands tight over his ears, teeth gritted. "Come _on,_ Raven..."

As if in reply, the door behind him began sliding open and Raven appeared in the crack. She was holding Robin's old uniform, neatly folded.

Before Beast Boy could ask about it, they heard the familiar sound of rotors nearing. Looking up, they saw the helicopter - tipped onto its side - pass over the shoreline and fly over the water, north of the tower. Before it got too far, there was a loud explosion and the helicopter blew apart, the debris falling into the channel.

"Yes! Star and Cy did it!" Beast Boy punched the air in glee.

"This isn't over. Come on," Raven said seriously. "Let's see if this will trigger his memory."

The pair edged their way to Robin, hoping not to threaten him. When he sensed them near, Robin looked turned and looked straight at them with an unreadable face.

"Robin?" Raven was tentative. "Here's your uniform, if you want it." She draped it across a boulder near to him.

Robin couldn't understand her...and yet, he felt calm as she spoke. He shoved his nose into the fabric on the rock and sniffed it. Strange...for some reason he felt...good. He placed his clawed hands on the uniform and tried to feel the material, but because his claws were overly long, all he succeeded in doing was tearing it.

The sound as it ripped disturbed him somehow. He didn't like it, and so he tried to pull his claws out. The sound came again, and his claws got stuck in the fabric. Robin growled at it and thrashed his arms around, trying to be rid of the ripping material. Soon, the uniform was only a pile of tatters.

"So much for that idea," Beast Boy whispered. "What now?"

Raven narrowed her eyes. She could only think of one thing. "We have to get him into the cell again."

"What?! How on earth are we gonna do that?"

"I...I don't know. But we have to contain him somehow. No!" Raven cried out as Starfire landed on the island and went straight to Robin. A black wall materialised between the two.

The Tamaranean looked questioningly at Raven, who shook her head meaningfully and gestured to the spot beside her and Beast Boy. Starfire complied and asked,

"Why...?"

"He's not Robin, remember? He doesn't know you."

"That is why we must make him remember."

"He's an animal, Star." This time it was Beast Boy who spoke. "They feel threatened when surrounded. And remember...we can't make him angry. I think I did before...just a little bit. His claws doubled in length."

There was a bright flash in the sky, followed by a clap of thunder. Droplets began to fall, signalling the beginning of a rainstorm. Robin looked up, confused. Where was the water coming from? Meanwhile, the Titans stood aside, getting soaked.

"So...he transforms even further when he is angry?"

"Yea, so don't tick him off."

"Then what can we do? We cannot simply stand here and watch him."

Raven put her finger to her lips to silence them before whispering, "If we can keep him in one place, we can talk to him."

"Raven thinks we should stick 'im in the cell," Beast Boy piped up. "But who knows how we'll get him in there without destroying half the tower on the...way...there...." Beast Boy quelled under Raven's glare.

"I see..." The three Titans turned to watch Robin again. He was hopping along the rocks by the water, ignoring them, too focused upon the strange, falling water. The peace wouldn't last, they had to act soon.

"Starfire, where's Cyborg?" Raven asked.

"He is on his way, with Professor Stryfe."

"What!?" Raven hissed. "He can't bring him here! What if Robin recognises him?"

"What about Slade?" Beast Boy cut in, more concerned about the larger threat. "He went down with the chopper, right?"

"No. Slade was never even in the vehicle. But I am sure that he is still involved."

Beast Boy and Raven looked at each other with wide eyes. "So...Slade is still out there somewhere?"

"He may be closer than you think." The cold, mocking voice was unmistakeable, but before any of the Titans could turn to face the owner, they were suddenly engulfed in a huge, heavy net that, with the momentum from its launcher, carried them over the rocks and into the channel.

_Splash!_ Raven, Starfire and Beast Boy were taken completely by surprise. The heavy net immediately began dragging them beneath the surface, and three Slade bots stood aside, one holding the net launcher and the other two flanking the Titans' dreaded nemesis.

Slade.

Raven's eyes glowed white in anger. "Azerath, Metrion, Zinth-ubub!" The water level rose above her mouth, then her nose. Starfire was literally stunned, unable to conjure a starbolt, and Beast Boy could not transform for fear of crushing the girls into the tough mesh. It was up to her.

She gripped onto opposite sides of the giant net and, trying to ignore the water that had now risen above her head, concentrated with all her might upon the tough mesh.

Meanwhile, Robin was standing upright now, facing Slade and his minions. As his new brain was very slow at catching up, he took his time to realise something.

Wasn't there four of them?

BOOM! From behind him, the Slade bot launched another net. The force of the net carried Robin across the ground and he landed with a _SMACK_ into a distant boulder. The judder from his landing caused the mechanics inside the boulder to activate and out of the top appeared one of the simulation blasters from the Titans' training course. Before it could even begin to shoot, Slade's heavily armoured foot smashed into its head, shattering the entire barrel and the top half of the blaster. The broken machinery fell upon Robin, still wrapped in the tough net.

Slade rested one foot on the boulder and looked down at the beast in the net. "You've become very stupid. If you were Robin, you'd be beating yourself up for that tragic lack of coordination."

Robin looked up at the faceless shadow through the thick mesh. There was only one eye showing, and yet all of the person's intent was showing through that single hole. It was captivating. He literally couldn't look away, hypnotised by the slanted eye. There was something incredibly familiar about that eye.

"What, no fight left? You're not only stupid, you're pathetic." Slade bent further down and hissed into Robin's ear. "Am I not making you...angry?"

At that moment, three things happened simultaneously. There was an explosion from the water, and the three Titans – Raven, Beast Boy and Starfire – burst out of the net, landing on the rocks. There was also a yell from the opposite direction. The fourth Titan, Cyborg, appeared over the near ridge, carrying the professor. Thirdly, there was an extremely long, bright flash in the sky, which was followed by a deafening thunderclap. The rain began to pour down even more fiercely than before.

At the sight of the deformed Robin, Stryfe screamed even louder than the thunder. His nightmare! It was here! He was going to die!

Robin started at the thunder, and again at the scream from behind him. He scrambled over himself in the net to see where the noise had come from, and his eyes locked with those of Professor Stryfe. The sound of the scream and the sight of the mad eyes unlocked something deep within Robin's brain. A memory. A memory of intense pain, sorrow, fury...and hatred.

He remembered Stryfe.


	17. Triggered Nightmare

All Robin had to do was bring up his arm and slash downwards, fingers outstretched. The claws on the ends of his digits were now four inches long and razor sharp, and they sliced straight through the thick, wire mesh in one swipe. He burst out of the opening, completely ignoring Slade, and made a fantastic leap at Stryfe, who was still over fifty metres away.

Cyborg reacted quickly, but not quickly enough. His cannon could arm only so fast. Robin landed with a thud on his metallic chest and leapt off again, carrying Stryfe, causing the weight to send Cyborg into the ground, face up. The sonic cannon blasted into the air, colliding with another thunderclap, causing an awful, ghostly howling sound to echo across the sky. The sound was reminiscent of a horror movie, causing everyone, even Slade, to pause and reflect on the situation.

Slade smiled. Everything was going according to plan. With everyone's attention on Robin, he slipped away into the shadows.

Robin stood at the peak of the ridge where Cyborg had emerged, holding Stryfe aloft with both hands, claws clamped painfully under the professor's armpits. All he felt was rage, the feeling that coursed through his entire body, electrocuting him with power and the lust to destroy. The man he held was the reason for his rage, and though Robin could not completely remember why he hated the professor, he remembered that he, in fact, did. With all of his being.

Stryfe screamed, piercing the ears of the onlookers. Robin roared even louder, every sound and movement the professor made was making him even angrier. The anger seemed to be filling him up from the bottom, and soon it would overflow. He didn't care. He just wanted to kill this man, destroy him. Rid the world of him...

The rage...it escalated. Too far.

Raven, Starfire and Beast Boy had escaped due to the explosion caused by Raven, and were now standing, transfixed, unable to take their eyes off of their leader. He'd suddenly stopped roaring and dropped Stryfe to the ground. As the professor scrambled to his feet and escaped, Robin dropped onto all fours and began to moan.

The Titans used his pause to regroup. Cyborg explained hurriedly what Stryfe had told him about Robin and Slade's plan.

"So, he's just going to tick him off until...?"

"Robin will die? No! We will not allow that to happen!" Starfire was adamant. "We can save him!"

"Even when he's human, Star, he won't listen to us if he's angry. What makes you think he will now?"

"Stryfe told you that intense emotions unlock his buried memories, and I know that there is one emotion more powerful than rage."

"With Robin? Doubt it." Beast Boy had nearly given up. Robin's moans became even louder.

"No, she's right. There is one." Raven finally spoke. "Lo-"

"Oh, don't say it." Beast Boy groaned. "Corniest solution ever. But if that's it, what can we do to...y'know, make him remember?"

"Wait, look!" Raven pointed to Robin, and the Titans turned to see what they had most feared to see. Robin gripped his skull, claws digging awkwardly into each other. He half-growled, half-screamed, obviously in immense pain, the agony driving all energy from his body. The bushy tail he'd grown, hanging uselessly until now, suddenly grew three times as long, the bush disappearing as the fur extended along it. At the tip of the tail a knife-like, hooked claw appeared, turning the now two metres long tail into a scourge.

That wasn't all, however. Robin's feet, or paws, began to mutate as well. A dew claw burst out of his ankles, and continued to grow until it was as long as the paw itself. The paw widened to the size of a frypan, now looking more reptilian than doglike. His hands transformed into paws as well, the claws becoming retractable as he clutched his head in them.

Starfire had never been more horrified in her entire life. Her best friend was suffering the worst torture, and it wasn't even his fault. She – they – had to help! She flew over to him and tentatively laid a hand on his still flesh covered shoulder.

"Robin..." she said softly.

"Starfire, NO!" Cyborg called.

The demonic tail whipped around in a huge arc and smacked into her, causing her to fall back down the ridge. As the end of the tail slipped off of her, the scourge sliced right across her back, leaving a diagonal gash from her waist to her right shoulder. She didn't make a sound as the Titans rushed to help her, but tears began to flow in rivers out of her shining, green eyes.

The lightning flashed again, lighting up Robin's new ghastly appearance for a split second. Instead of standing straight up, he was now standing bent, the digitigrade legs refusing to be straight any longer. He was obviously trying to stand on two feet, but was now better built to stand on four – to keep in his strange posture, he used his extremely long tail to balance. As the thunder rolled, his roaring stopped, and instead he silently stared at the four heroes standing at the foot of the ridge.

* * * *

Slade wasn't stupid. In fact, he was probably a genius. However, if he couldn't separate Robin one last time from his former friends, they might somehow capture him, and he couldn't allow that. One little hitch, that's all it was. If he couldn't make the Titans disappear, he'd have to make Robin run again.

He stood at the very top of Titans Tower, on the very edge, peering down at the scene far below. As planned, the mere sight of Stryfe triggered a hated memory within Robin. Stryfe had escaped when Robin had begun to transform, and was nowhere to be found. That was fine, there was always Plan B: Slade himself. Robin probably hated him ten times more than he did Stryfe, and now that the pathetic scientist had begun the process of the beast's demise, Slade was confident that the beast hardly had long to go.

He chuckled to himself as the alien girl was sliced open as she tried to comfort the beast. Perhaps he needn't worry after all. Still, in his line of work, it was best that you always prepared for the worst. He pulled a small, metallic disc from his belt and hurled it with all his might into the sky.

BOOM! The lightning attacked the disc and caused and even longer flash in the sky and the thunder sounded at the exact same time. Robin's even more heightened senses told him to look into the sky, and there, on the roof of the Tower was the masked man who had trapped him in the net. The one with the strange, mesmerising eye.

Ignoring the rain that was now pelting down with all force, he stared at the shadowy figure on the roof far above him. The eye...the eye...he knew the eye. But from what? From where?

Slade saw the beast staring up at him and smiled to himself. _Come on,_ he thought. _Come and get me_. He pulled his staff out and extended it to its full length.

The image of seeing Slade far above him, mixed with the rainstorm and the familiar, long staff, sparked something in Robin's brain. The man...the eye...the staff...the cold...somewhere inside of him, the box of memories was unleashed. A rapid slideshow flew across his eyes of all of the horrible things Slade had done to the city, to _him_.

Slade. The name. It was soaked in his hatred. He remembered now, just as he remembered Stryfe.

"Sss...ssslaaade..." he hissed, barely managing to pronounce the word. His muscles tensed and his legs bent even more, causing him to position himself on all fours. The Titans rushed to him, knowing what was going to happen, but they could have never matched the beast's incredible speed.

With incredible power rushing through his legs, Robin launched himself from the top of the ridge and began racing to the base of the Tower. His speed was unbelievable, putting even Beast Boy's cheetah form to shame. Once at the base of the massive structure, Robin didn't even pause before taking a huge leap straight up, landing with a crash on the tough glass front of the second storey. He dug his huge claws right into the glass, so sharp that they didn't even shatter the window.

Without falling back down even an inch, he continued bounding up the vertical face of the Tower. Thud, _crash_. Thud, _crash_. Every landing caused the glass face to crack even more. The entire length of his tail was rising and falling like a wavelength, helping him to keep on going straight up. When he finally reached the top storey, just metres away from Slade, he made one final, epic leap, the force of which caused the living room's glass window to completely shatter. He flew into the air and crashed straight into Slade.

Before he was even halfway up the Tower, the Titans had taken action. Raven and Beast Boy flew straight up around the other side of the structure, while Starfire carried Cyborg and flew up straight behind Robin. They knew that this was the point of no return. If they didn't save Robin now, he'd be gone.

_Forever_.


	18. Consequence

A/N: Sorry for late update. My laptop has been having problems with starting up. Hopefully I can finish this story soon before this laptop is taken to the shop. Enjoy!

* * * *

Friction's power was weakening, which made her even angrier. The beast's hooked claws had completely ripped out a tendon in her leg, and it took all of her concentration to keep herself from falling apart. She couldn't feel her left foot at all, which meant her power was diminishing in strength and soon she would lose far too much blood. She'd tried to encase her mauled leg in the green armour, but she'd lost control of that, too.

Her fury could be heard by the terrified and yet curious civilians in the street beneath, as she cursed and screamed profanities to the sky. Friction was not going to give up yet. She would find that creature again. She _could not_ let the creature win. Not again.

No, this time she would rip its heart right out.

* * * *

Robin scratched and tore at his hated enemy, each slash loaded with intense hatred. He didn't notice the lack of movement, nor the sparks flying out. He just wanted to destroy every single part of its body. Slivers of the Slade decoy-droid were thrown in all directions from his whirlwind attack. Soon, nothing was left but a pile of scrap metal and dead circuitry. Robin stared at the mess, realising his mistake. No. Not again.

He breathed heavily, the loathing for Slade igniting every part of his body. The new introduction of anger caused the beast to react and Robin's shoulder began to burn with agony. "RAAAARGHHH!" he yelled, half in anger, half in pain. He fell to his knees, or would have if he still had knees; instead he toppled forward and fell facedown into the cold cement of the roof.

There was another flash of lightning, in which two of the Titans finally reached the Tower's peak. Cyborg and Starfire saw Robin writhing on the wet surface in the bright light of the flash.

"Robin! We have to get out of here! Slade is only trying to make you angrier until you kill us all, and that includes yourself!" Cyborg shouted over the peal of thunder.

"Aaaghh, agghhhh!!" Robin's back arched and Cyborg could clearly see the still-human flesh bubble and squirm. The shoulder muscles seemed to be expanding at a rapid pace.

"Robin, we must go inside! We can heal you!" Starfire was not afraid, but could not go to Robin's side as Cyborg held her arm. She could have easily incapacitated the half-robot, but understood his meaning. Her back was only just sealed by Raven's powers, and could break open again at any second. The pain still burned through her body.

Two Slade bots began firing at the Titans, but they were stopped short as they, like their predecessors, were engulfed in black energy and completely shattered. They fell apart from each other, revealing Raven.

"Quick, Rae. Can you do that to him? Stop him from moving, I mean." Cyborg pointed to the thrashing Robin. The rain was coming down on them vengefully, causing Raven's sight to go fuzzy. She shook her head, at the same time replying,

"No." Lightning lit up the sky again, and the sight that met the Titans caused all three to yell in horror.

Robin's upper back suddenly split open in two places, inviting him to roar in anguish. Out of the identical wounds burst long, curved, pitch-black appendages that came agonizingly out of his shoulders as long as two metres. With another howl from Robin, the appendages opened up to reveal gigantic, feathered wings that stretched a further two metres, creating a wingspan larger than four metres.

Where they had seemingly grown, there was a river of scarlet – human – blood pouring from the openings. Starfire refused to stop screaming, but Raven and Cyborg didn't blame her. The sight was horrific, appalling, _disgusting_. Raven kneeled near to Robin's head and peered at his face, which was laid on the wet cement. His canines had extended to thrice their normal length and now sat above his bottom lip, the sharp edges cutting the flesh.

However, what was more shocking than both the wings and the fangs was Robin's face. It was soaking in not just rain but tears, rivers of them. His eyes were so full of sorrow and agony that Raven's heart felt ready to break. He was sobbing just like a human, and acting not at all like a beast. She could barely hold back her own tears; she would give anything to rescue Robin from this hell he was trapped in.

The humongous, black-feathered wings lay uselessly, getting soaked in the pelting rain. Robin moaned in anguish, terribly hurt from his transformation. Why was it that every time he felt the wonderful emotion, it was followed by excruciating pain? His cheek lay on the concrete, wet from both rain and tears. The awful pain in his shoulders had slowed to a fierce ache that spread down his back and his arms. Suddenly, all he wanted to do was lie in the cold, pelting rain and fade away.

"Hey guys! Look who I fou...oh..." Beast Boy stumbled up to the other Titans, holding his hand above his eyes to shield them from the rain. In the other hand he held the ankle of an unconscious Professor Stryfe, who hehad dragged across the rooftop. He swallowed hard as he saw Robin's new appearance. "Ahem, er...wow..." The changeling was torn between making a dry joke and retching, but he knew neither were at all appropriate.

All of the Titans eyes were downcast, saddened by the terrible sight of their old leader. The tableau was so ultimate, so definitive, that they could not bring themselves to move, to take Robin inside, to do _anything_. The scene seemed to last for hours, a moment trapped in time...but there was one person there who didn't understand nostalgia.

Robin struggled to move his arms, as his shoulder muscles were still crying in pain. Raven touched his furry forearm in an attempt to stop him, but he shook her off. Slowly, agonizingly, he managed to get up to his knees, before pausing to take a breath. His back was refusing to cooperate. The wings were so huge and heavy that they forced him to lean forwards, but he'd learnt enough physics in his tiny lifetime that if he leant forward, he would only crash back into the concrete.

Cyborg, at Robin's back, was shocked to see his leader's flesh healing itself rapidly before his very eyes. The flesh was sewing itself back together around the new appendages, as if by magic. The creature that was now in Robin's body seemed to be somewhat godlike.

"Guys, what do I do with...?" Beast Boy held up Stryfe by his ankle, who was still blacked out. Raven shook her head at him, indicating that he should take the professor away before Robin began another transformation episode due to his hatred. Beast Boy was about to comply, but turned back and asked, "So, er...should we go look for Slade or...?"

"Slade can wait. Robin needs help. Come on," Cyborg finally woke from his stupor. "We need to get him to the infirmary." He took one of Robin's arms tentatively, and Starfire did likewise to the other arm. They gently raised him up, and surprisingly, he did not lash out. Instead, Robin let them lift him and straightened his legs so as he could stand up. He forced his digitigrade muscles to comply.

Once he had gained proper balance, however, Robin shook his arms out of Cyborg and Starfire's grip and took two paces forward, head lifted to the sky. The rain seemed to be weakening.

He sniffed the air, and spoke. "Sss...Slade."

Beast Boy, Raven, Cyborg and Starfire instantly understood and moved in front of Robin, forming a wide semi-circle. Raven's eyes began glowing white. "He's still here," she hissed. "He's here on the rooftop." The Titans looked around wildly, unable to see through the rain and the darkness of the storm. Their backs were to Robin and Stryfe, and the edge of the rooftop where Robin had climbed over.

Lightning. The Titans couldn't see anything – or anyone – on the rooftop. Slade. Where was he?

In the harsh thunder that followed, Stryfe woke up. The Titans, with their backs to him, didn't notice nor hear him. The professor stood up in a hurry, his head racing with thoughts of panic and his eyes barely able to see anything. He didn't even see the bloody, heavily-muscled, furry, black creature that stood right in front of him.

Robin stared straight at the short man, recognizing him instantly.


	19. Life and Death

Before either Stryfe or Robin could make a move, there was a sound from behind them, making Robin turn and Stryfe peer around him. Both of them yelled in fright at what they saw.

Over the edge of the roof crawled a mess of plastic pipes that seemed to contain what looked – and smelled – like rotted flesh. To Stryfe, it was just another nightmare, but Robin recognised the smell. Friction. He backed away slightly, bumping into the short professor.

Friction looked terrible. The metal which she had melted off of herself was nowhere to be seen – instead she was being held together by plastic tubing, with joints that showed just what was underneath: crimson blood and muscles, no skin to be seen. How on earth she had managed to find him, let alone make her way up to the roof of the tower, was beyond Robin's tiny brain. He couldn't get past the fact that he was facing her again. The very sight of her filled him with fear.

The other Titans turned at the yells from Robin and Stryfe, but could barely see anything through the blinding rain and the darkness. However, it was far too late for them to intervene anyway. Friction had one mission, and she was going to complete it.

Once over the edge of the rooftop, the mass of muscles and plastic took a short breather before standing up awkwardly. Robin swallowed hard when he saw her face through the rain. _There was none._ The plastic that should have encased her head had fallen off, leaving a soggy, repulsive mess, only just recognisable as it still hung around her skull. There were no eyes, no ears, no nose and no mouth. Nothing. How had she found him? He heard the professor behind him mumbling something, but he couldn't understand what was being said. Friction spoke in the same, rattling voice, though where the sound came out he couldn't tell.

"Creature, you have hurt me for the last time. At last, you die." She held up one arm, with the hand she still had attached, and faced her fleshless palm towards him. Robin instinctively ducked and swung around Stryfe, his huge, heavy wings causing both Raven and Beast Boy to have their feet pushed from under them.

Friction never stopped; she didn't realise what he'd done. In another flash of lightning, to everyone's horror, something burst out of Professor Stryfe's chest and flew into Friction's open hand. It was Stryfe's own heart, still beating. She closed her fingers around the organ, tighter and tighter, until it exploded into a bloody mess. Stryfe collapsed onto the cement, dead.

All five Titans were shocked beyond belief. The thunder rolled soon after Stryfe had fallen, and Friction gasped one last time, "At last, you die." She obviously thought she had just killed Robin, assuming that Stryfe's heartbeat had been the beast's. Robin, Raven, Beast Boy, Starfire and Cyborg all backed away from the terrible villain, appalled.

Friction fell back to her knees, the rain now falling harder than ever, bombarding into her unprotected body. She squeezed her hand into a tight fist, Stryfe's heart still trapped within, before she fell forwards, head-to-head with Stryfe, and stopped moving.

Cyborg looked at his arm, checking for vital signals. "Dead," he said. "Both of them." There was a lump in his throat.

"Impressive. Keen to kill until the end." The voice was behind them, causing all five to turn, the leftover Titans careful to avoid the gigantic wings. None of them could see anything, but they all knew who the voice belonged to.

"She was rather stupid though. Just like all of you." Slade stepped just close enough so that the regrouped Titans could see his mask, but nothing more. The rain made it too hard to see anything more than his one, menacing eye.

"Hey!" Beast Boy leaned forward into a ready stance. "I've had just about enough of you and your crazy plans! Why can't you leave us and this city alone!?"

"You can't torture Robin anymore, either!" Raven formed a dome of black energy over all five of them. Robin crouched and poked at the boundary, confused. Raven spoke again. "We know your plan, and it won't work."

"Robin would never betray any of us!" cried Starfire.

Slade chuckled, infuriating them. "Robin is dead. He and the beast are two separate people, and now that the beast has full control, Robin's life force has been destroyed."

"That's not true!" Starfire shot back, incensed. "Ever since the experiment, two life forces have been fighting for control in Robin's body. Just because one is currently dominant, doesn't mean the other has been defeated!"

"We'll see about that." Slade took another step forward. Conveniently, the sky lit up with a massive flash of sheet lightning, showing his full person. Cyborg armed his cannon and Starfire lit up her hands with starbolts, ready. Robin, on the other hand, was still focused on the strange black barrier that surrounded them. He poked it and sniffed it, before sinking his huge claws into it and dragging them downwards.

"Nnnnn..." Raven gritted her teeth, trying to keep the shield secure. Slade crouched into the same position as Robin and held out one armoured hand.

"Remember me?" he said in his cold, mocking voice. Robin's attention switched from the dome wall to Slade. He looked at the strange, single eye, once again hypnotised by it. Something about it made him feel humbled, smaller...he almost felt awed by it.

His tiny brain began to kick into gear. The eye! The pain, the hatred...Slade...

"No, Robin!" Raven squeezed her eyes tight in concentration. "Don't look! Just ignore him!"

"Please, Robin! Listen to us! We are your friends, we can help you!" Starfire timidly touched his shoulder again.

CRASH! The black dome shattered into nothingness. Robin had smashed it with his scourge-like tail. He made a leap for Slade, but his nemesis vanished into the rain and darkness. He shook with rage, furious at the owner of the eye. Slade. He barely remembered anything about him except the emotions that he induced. Fear. Sorrow. Hatred. Anger. Slade was worse than Stryfe.

Robin's mind was filled with bloodlust and absolute rage. When he turned his head to look around, the Titans saw his eyes – they were red. Not just red irises, but completely drowned in glowing, blood-red light.

"ROOOOAAR!" Out of one of Robin's hands, light began to form. It was like blue and green fire, swirling together in a sphere. He threw it at the ground, causing part of the roof to explode in a shower of cement and sparks. The Titans scattered. Cyborg yelled above the storm and Robin,

"GET SLADE! I DON'T CARE HOW, JUST GET HIM!"

"NO!" cried Starfire. "We must help Robin! Make him remember us!"

"ROOAAAR!" Another sphere of fire flew into the ventilation chimney. Robin's wings stretched to their full length; a terrifying sight in the minimal light of the storm. Then, to everyone's surprise, he began to speak in perfect English.

"I will kill you Slade! I swear I'll kill you!" The voice was strange, like two people speaking at once; one deep and throaty, one lighter and more humanoid. Both hands simultaneously formed fireballs and he hurled them in opposite directions, one missing Beast Boy by millimetres.

Slade paused, thunderstruck. How could he speak? It was impossible...the creature had only just been born, and was far too focused on its rage to speak properly. So, why? What had happened? He went over the entire plan in his head, calculating what the possibilities were. Surely...surely Robin and the beast hadn't been separated again? They had had to fuse to become the creature he was now, but there was no way that they could have split apart...was there? If he could speak, that meant the beast was no longer a dumb animal, but an intelligent mixture of both Robin and beast. The separation of life forces wouldn't matter, as long as Robin continued to transform.

And boy, did he transform. Robin's back suddenly began arching more and more, the human spine morphing itself into a new shape. Out of his flesh burst forth more shaggy, black fur, which grew over his back, shoulders and up the full length of his arms. Slade grimaced. He had to get out of here, now. Soon the power would grow too much.

"NO!" The ground Slade stood on suddenly crumbled, sparks flying everywhere, and for a second he lost his balance. In that second, Robin pounced. He wrapped his paw-like hands around Slade's throat and using the momentum from his leap, flew over the edge of the Tower's roof.

"ROBIN!" The four Titans screamed his name simultaneously, and dived off of the roof to follow him.

Slade struggled in the beast's grip, but no matter how hard he hit the creature, it wasn't fazed. He even took out a weapon from his belt and shoved it straight into the beast's chest, but it was completely ignored. The only part of the creature that still looked like Robin was his face and part of his collarbone. As they plummeted, Slade could see the creature's body transforming from humanoid to animal.

The animal's claws were cutting off his breath. Soon, he'd be throttled before he even hit the ground below. Slade aimed and sent the most powerful kick he could manage into the beast's gut. It worked – he was let go, but the creature seemed to slow in the air, his wings almost stretched, acting somewhat like a parachute, but barely.

As he began to turn in midair, he saw the beast begin to conjure a gigantic fireball, larger than any of his others. Larger than the one that had almost killed Friction months ago. Slade fumbled for his grappling hook, and was shocked to find that the beast had slashed through half of his belt with its hind legs. He looked up, his single eye wide in fear.

Robin poured everything he had into the last fireball. He held his arms – now forelegs – as wide as he could to hold the huge, destructive anomaly. But, before he could even hurl it at his most hated enemy, he felt several large objects hit him from behind. The fireball lost control and went flying into the distance, over the water of the channel.

Angrily, he turned over in the air to see what had hit him, and found himself face-to-face with the four people who had followed him since he had ripped off Friction's hand. The green boy, the tall girl, the half-robot and the dark, cloaked girl. "WHAT-" he began to roar, but they all laid their hands on his head and shoulders, making him stop in mid-sentence, surprised.

"Come on man," the half-robot spoke. "You gotta wake up!"

"Dude, please..." said the green boy.

"Robin, you are our best friend. You always will be, no matter what happens." The tall girl's eyes were running heavily with tears. As he looked into her eyes, his rage disappeared, to be replaced by sorrow. Somehow, he felt terribly sorry for her.

"Robin," It was the dark-haired girl. "Do not let it win." He turned to her, shocked to find that his own eyes were filling with water too. He blinked, and suddenly, time seemed to stop. They were stuck in mid-air, fallen to half-way down the Tower. He looked at their faces. He saw their sorrow, their fear for him. The box of memories in his head burst open, and millions of memories flew past his eyes – happy memories he had shared with them, good times he could remember, spent with _them_. His friends. His _best friends_.

"Robin," she spoke again. "What is your name?"

He looked right into her dark, pained eyes and said softly, "My name...is Robin."


	20. The Beast Without

As soon as he'd said his name, a new feeling swept over him, flushing away thoughts of Slade. It was even more wonderful than anger, more fantastic than hatred. He closed his eyes in the blissful feeling, savouring the moment. He could be burned alive and not care.

Time began again. Robin felt the wind rush past him, literally feeling the air attack his wings. He turned back around and saw the ground – his death – race to meet him. Suddenly, he didn't care what happened to him, but his friends were worth more than anything, and he couldn't let them die with him. Performing a barrel roll in the air, he grabbed all four of them with his newly extended limbs and held them tightly.

He spread his wings to their full extent, screaming in pain as they tore against his back, the wind still trying to drag them down. He'd managed to stop just three metres before hitting the ground. The wind continued to attack him and he soared forwards, dropping his friends to the ground safely. The rain had soaked his wings completely, and they refused to let him fly properly. The pain of the sudden stop had almost black out, and he hung in the air as though the wings were controlling themselves.

Raven recovered quickly and spread her hands. "Azerath, Metrion, Zinthos!" Spheres of black energy engulfed Robin's feet, anchoring him to the spot, before he could begin to fly over the water of the channel. To their surprise, Robin did stop; he fell to the ground like a ragdoll. However, the wings – and the rest of the beast's body – continued to fly onwards.

The Titans sprinted to Robin's body and Cyborg picked him up, holding him in his arms. He was completely human; pink flesh covering his entire body, with no fur, no tail, no claws and no wings. He was Robin again. He moaned softly and opened his eyes just slightly, seeing his friends' smiling faces.

"Robin! You have returned!"

"Dude, it's so good to see you again."

"Welcome back, man."

Robin managed a small smile. "You guys...still haven't given up on me...?"

"Never." It was Raven who had spoken. She was smiling too, looking intensely relieved. Robin had probably never felt so happy in his entire life. His best friends were still here, even after all he'd done, all he had become. He couldn't remember anything except from the second that he and the beast had split apart again, but he knew exactly what had been done. Slade was wrong – he wasn't dead, he'd never "died," he had kept the human memory of his hatred for Slade deep inside, like an everlasting fire, keeping even the tiniest part of his brain human when he had fused with the beast. Exactly what Friction had done when she had refused to die – she'd kept the hated memory so intense, so vibrant, that she had stayed sane and alive.

Now that he was human again, the flame of hatred seemed to have gone out. He didn't care about Slade right now; all that mattered was his friends. The Teen Titans.

"Guys, sorry to be Johnny Raincloud, but what do we do about..._that?"_ Beast Boy pointed. The creature was circling back.

Robin stepped out of Cyborg's arms and crouched weakly on one of the rocks. "It's...it's not me anymore. We've physically split apart. We can fight it."

"Man, you ain't gonna move." Cyborg shook his head. "You're only half-alive. Look at yourself, you're covered in your own blood. We can handle this guy."

_"Handle me? Harr harr harr..."_ The Titans turned to look at the huge beast, a black shadow armed with gigantic claws and the scourge-like tail. _"I'm finally free of that pathetic human. Do you really think I'm just going to be snuffed out? I know all of your secrets from Robby's little brain. You can't touch me."_ It grinned, showing fangs as tall as Cyborg.

Raven's eyes glowed white, Cyborg armed his sonic cannon, Starfire ignited her hands and Beast Boy transformed into a T-rex.

"Teen Titans, GO!"

Cyborg blasted the gigantic creature backwards, but it dug its claws into the ground just as its hind legs touched the water. Milliseconds afterwards, Beast Boy smashed into its chest, causing it to slide back even more. _"Pathetic," _it laughed. _"You are all path-"_ A starbolt flew right into the beast's right eye, causing it to rear backwards, roaring in pain.

"You-will-never-touch-Robin-again!" Starfire screamed, throwing a starbolt after each word spoken. The beast backed further into the water, waves now lapping at its tall heels.

A wave began to rise behind the creature, growing taller and taller with each second. Raven's arms were raised along with it, and she spoke, "_You_ are the pathetic one. You use Robin's body to fight. You need him. Without him you are just a giant heap of fur." She brought her hands down. The wave crashed upon the beast, stronger, heavier than the creature could manage. It sucked the beast away from the shore and dragged it out into the channel.

Before it could recover, Starfire let forth another barrage of starbolts, and Cyborg blasted it yet again with the sonic cannon. Beast Boy transformed into a hawk, flew over the water till he was above the beast, and transformed yet again – into a whale.

BOOM! More giant waves crashed upon the shore of the island. Beneath Beast Boy's huge body, black smoke rose and dispersed into the air. He transformed back into himself and bounded out of the water and onto the shore, along with the other Titans.

"Is it...gone?" The changeling questioningly looked at Raven.

"Yes," Robin answered instead. "It was never a real, live creature. You destroyed all that was left."

Beast Boy punched the air. "The Teen Titans triumph again! Go Beast Boy, go Beast Boy, go, go..."

Robin grinned at his friend. "From now on, I'll let you do all of the transforming."

"Come on," Raven took Robin's arm and draped it over her shoulders, helping him to walk. "Let's go inside."

* * * *

Like last time, Robin was on the rooftop. The storm had blown itself out by morning and he sat, now dressed back in his old uniform, on the edge where he had attacked the Slade droid. The glass still needed to be replaced.

He chuckled as he saw the rainbow arcing over the city. How cliché. "Crazy, crazy..."

"What's so crazy?"

He wasn't surprised to see Raven appear beside him. She sat down cross-legged next to him on the edge and smiled a real smile at him. He smiled back.

"You're up early."

"Likewise."

Robin's smile faded a little. "How's Starfire?"

"I sealed the wound properly. It won't take long to heal, as long as she doesn't move about much."

"That's good. I feel terrible about it." He looked down.

Raven frowned at him. "You weren't in control. Robin, this is different than last time. The creature is completely gone, there's nothing left now. You have to learn to forgive yourself."

"Yea, you're right. Though, I don't know what I did to deserve friends like you guys."

Raven blushed a little, and looked back at the city skyline. "You would have done the same."

"Thanks so much, for everything."

She smiled again. "That's what...that's what friends are for."

* * * *

A/N: If that's not closure, I dunno what is! **Thanks so much** for your reviews, favourites and everyone who decided to read my story. I really appreciate you guys! I hope you enjoyed this story, because I sure did. I made every single chapter up on the spot – no planning whatsoever - so if it seems like a bundle of random words, I understand. Anyway, if you'd like to see more stories about Robin or whoever, just ask. I don't have much else to do. Thanks again!


End file.
